Promise
by AnonymousSanSama
Summary: The murder of a nineteen-year-old sets off a chain of events that changes the lives of Lukas Bondevik and his teammates. Old wounds re-open as the baffling case begins driving too close to home. Can the team survive, or will they lose one of their own? Rated T for blood, guns, & multiple character deaths
1. Prologue

**Welcome to my current major project. I've been working like a nut on this. Please enjoy! R & R**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia, as much as I wish I did**

He runs through the dense park. He has to get away from his pursuer. Unfortunately, he isn't fast enough. Stumbling over the roots of the trees, he crashes to the ground. He unintentionally lets out a cry of pain.

"You try to escape from me?" the pursuer asks, voice heavily accented.

Something cold and metallic presses against his head.

_No, no, no_, he thinks miserably. _I'm sorry, my brothers. I wasn't strong enough. Please, please escape._

A smile finds its way across the face of the wielder of the gun. A finger slowly pulls the trigger.

Bang!

The hand holding the gun drops to the side of the weilder. The killer bends down beside the dead male.

"No more misery for you. I hope you're finally happy." The tone of the voice is mournful. The muderer mourns the former misery of the victim.


	2. Chapter 1: A Hostage Situation

**Okay, so this chapter is actually a bit of an into of some of the major characters. It may suck a bit, but the next chapter is where the ball starts really rolling. But meanwhile, enjoy. R & R**

**Disclaimer: Do I havta? Fine, fine. I like, so totally don't own Hetalia**

"How long has it been?" Mathias asks lazily.

"Six hours," I reply with a yawn.

"And nothing happened in any of those hours," Mathias states in a semi-questioning tone.

"And nothing happened _at all _in any of those hours," I clarify.

"Great." The one word drips with sarcasm. Mathias must have picked it up from spending so much time with me.

We're both at the end of our nerves. Along with our friends Tino

Väinämöinen and Berwald Oxenstierna,another officer, Vash Zwingli, and tech specialist Antonio Fernández Carriedo, Mathias Kohler and I had been sent to deal with a hostage situation in a supermarket. Apparently, some crazy man decided to hold afternoon shoppers hostage and utterly refused to let anyone out. The police captain, Ivan Braginski, a man of Russian origin, had sent the five of us out to deal with it. I'm not sure how Mathias and I got wrapped into this, since we're field investigators. There's nothing to investigate, just a crazed man who locked a lot of innocent people in a store.

_Why does Ivan send me and Mathias out whenever he sends Tino and Berwald?_ I muse to myself. _Just because the four of us grew up together and are close friends isn't an excuse to send out two field investigators_. I sigh.

"You okay, Lukas?" Mathias asks me.

"Yeah," I reply. "I'm just a little tired."

"Does Emil know you'll be out late?"

I silently cursed myself for not telling my little brother not to wait up for me.

"I take that as a 'no'," Mathias comments with his stupid grin.

I pull out my cell phone and send a quick text to Emil. I look at Mathias. "Yes, I did tell Emil I'll be home late."

Mathias laughs. It takes all of my willpower not to beat him into a pulp right here and now. I'm considering just kicking him out of the squad car and leaving when the radio buzzes.

"We got communication!" comes Tino's high, excited voice. "Lukas, Mathias, you guys may want to hear this."

Mathias and I quickly exit the car and hurry to where Tino, Berwald, and Vash have been the entire time (six hours ago the hostage situation began, but we've only been here for a little over four hours) trying to communicate with our whack job. After so long, our man is finally speaking.

"...not letting them go. Not until they apologize," is the first thing I heard as Mathias and I approach the little makeshift station set up near the store. It contains a phone hooked up to a speaker so everyone can hear. We're connected to the speaker system in the store itself thanks to out tech specialist Antonio, an always smiling Spaniard who's usually oblivious whenever he gets on some one's nerves.

"What's he going on about?" I inquire.

"He keeps going on and on about someone having to apologize to him," Vash explains. "He won't say who or why he needs to be apologized to." He sighs. "It may not be so easy to get him out."

"Is he armed?"

"Unknown."

"D' we r'sk go'n' 'n?" Berwald questions.

A slight scowl makes its way across my face. I know that if someone goes in there, it will be either me or Vash as the two most level headed members of this group.

"I think we should," Mathias pipes up. "Either Lukas or Vash could go in." See? What did I say? I knew it'd be me and Vash as candidates for going in. "Whoever goes in should wear a bulletproof vest just in case he's armed."

Yet again I resist the urge to slap him.

"I'll go," to my surprise I find myself offering. Did I seriously just say that?

Vash, Tino, Berwald, Mathias, and Antonio seem as shocked to hear those words leave my mouth as I am. Of course, none of them object. I don't think anyone wants to be in the same vicinity as a crazy man. Yes, we have dealt with people like this, but they're not high on our "People We Want to Hang Out With" 'd rather avoid them, but in this profession, we don't have much of a choice of turning a blind eye to them.

"Are you already wearing a bulletproof vest?" Tino asks.

I nod. I'm usually always prepared for possible gun activity.

"G'd l'ck," Berwald says as I check my gun. "B' caref'l."

"I will," I respond with a nod.

"Good luck," the others say one by one as I pass them to enter the store. I still can't believe I'm doing this. And now, here's the part where we learn that the door isn't even locked. Dang it. I enter the store slowly, carefully planning out every step in my head. There's realy only one step-get the man to let everyone out.

Many people cower on the floor against a wall. A tall tanned man stands above them yelling about needing an "apology." I inhale deeply, calming my nerves so I can concntrate on the task at hand better. The man hears me approach. He turns to me.

"Who are you?" he yells.

I raise my hands to show I'm not a threat. "My name is Lukas Bondevik," I reply slowly. I don't have to add that I'm with the police, considering that I'm still in uniform. "I'm not here to hurt you. I just want you to let these people go."

"No!" he shrieks, pulling out a knife.

Ah, I was hoping it wouldn't come to this. I'm about to protest when he grabs one of the hostages, a man with brown hair and drowsy eyes. This causes me to pull out my gun and yell, "Don't move or I will shoot!"

Several people scream at this sudden turn of events.

"Not until this guy admits he's wrong!"

Seriously? This whole situation is because of a squabble?

"Let these people leave or I will shoot," I say sharply. I feel my hands tremble ever so slightly. I really don't feel one hundred percent cut out for this. I'm only a field investigator. I feel that Vash would be better in this situation than I am. _I'll be just fine. The others have my back_, I reassure myself. Now I feel a bit better.

He holds the knife closer to the neck of the man. Running on adrenaline and instinct, I pull the trigger. I hit the crazed man in his shoulder. He cries out in plain, dropping his victim. Tino, Vash, and Berwald hurry in after hearing the gunshot. Tino calls for an ambulance to take the man away while Vash and Berwald comfort the people by assuring their safety. Realizing I'm no longer needed, I exit the store with the former hostages.

"Great job in there," Mathias remarks with his annoying smile.

"Thanks," I murmmer before my knees buckle.

Mathias yelps, catching me before I fall to the ground.

"Are you okay?" he asks worried.

"Yeah," I reply. "It's just my adrenaline wearing off. I was so nervous in there."

Mathias smiles. "Happens to the best of us."

"You say as though you were on the force longer than me."

He laughs.

"I have to get home," I pipe up. "Emil's probably waiting for me."

Mathias helps me back into the car, telling me to at least get some shut eye before going home so I'd have the strength to support my own weight once he dropped me off. I take his advice and the fatigue truly stikes me the moment my eyes close. After what only feels like a minute, Mathias shakes me awake, claiming that we arrived at my home. I slowly open my eyes and yes indeed, I'm back home. I mumble a quick thanks before exiting the car. Mathias warns me not to push myself. I assure him I won't.

I unlock the front door. I enter the house as Mathias drives off and lock the door well.

"Emil?" I call. "I'm home!"

"I'm in the kitchen, Lukas," my little brother replies.

I walk through the main floor of the two floor home I live in with my brother until I reach the kitchen in the back near the staircase. Emil sits slouched on a stool by the kitchen island eating some leftover smoked salmon from last night. We waste nothing in this house.

"Posture," I snap out of habit as I enter.

"You haven't even been home for a minute and you're already criticizing me?" Emil retorts, not looking at me.

"I will continue until your back is straight."

Emil turns to glare at me, his violet eyes hard. I return his glare with a long severe stare with my own indigo eyes. Emil turns away, muttering into the forkful of fish in his mouth.

"What was that?" I inquire, making myself a cup of black coffee.

"You're never home anymore," he mumbles slightly more clearly.

I take a seat next to him and ruffle his silver hair with my free hand.

"There's nothing I can do about it Emil," I explain. "Ivan is driving the whole team to our limits. What he says, goes."

"Did you at least catch a bad guy tonight?"

"Yes. We did."

"At least you're doing your job properly."

I respond by ruffling his hair again.

"Stop it!" he snaps. "I'm not a little kid."

"In my eyes you still are." I lock eyes with him. "Emil, I know I haven't been the best brother lately, but once things wind down a bit at work, I promise I'll take some time off to spend time with you."

He nods in response. Looking away quickly, he mutters a hurried "thank you."

"Good night Emil." I rise from my seat, downing my bitter coffee. I place the empty mug in the dishwasher. Heading for the stairs, I glance over my shoulder to take one last look at my little brother for the night. Aside from Roderich Edelstein, the DNA specialist at work, almost no one could tell that Emil and I are brothers. Emil's all violet eyes and silver hair, while my physical features consist of pale skin, light blond hair, and indigo eyes. Aside from parts of our facial stuctures (as Roderich pointed out once and I trust his expert judgment), we look nothing alike.

I trudge up the stairs, the weight of the entire day bearing down on my shoulders. I enter my room and quickly undress and change into my pajamas. Completely fatigued, sleep comes quickly.


	3. Chapter 2: The Body in the Park

**Here's chapter 2 people! Now is where this begin. I don't speak many languages, so I used Google Translate. Yeah, I know it's not very reliable, but it's all I had access to. Enjoy. R & R, please!**

**Disclaimer: eh, I'd rather not. *Looks around* hej! Norge! Do the disclaimer!**

**Norway: Why me?**

**Me:Because you're the main character in this fic**

**Norway: AnonymousSanSama does not own Hetalia...Thank goodness**

**Me:*glares***

The loud ringing of my phone wakes me up. Groggily, I lift myself onto one elbow, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes. I check the clock on my bedside table. 6:15 A.M. Who's calling me so early? I peer at the screen at the ID and nearly panic. It's Ivan.

"

Hallo*?" I answer, accidentally reverting to my native tongue. I quickly fix my error. "Hello?"

"Ah, Bondevik, you answered unlike Kohler," Ivan greets. I'm not surprised in the least that Mathias didn't answer his phone. He tends to sleep like the dead until close to ten o'clock. Or at least he wishes he could.

"Is something wrong Ivan?" I ask, hoping he won't beat around the bush.

"Actually, something _is _wrong," the captain replies. "An early morning jogger called in to say that she found a dead body in the park. I need you, Mathias, and Nicholae to investigate as soon as possible. I spoke to Nicolae already."

"I'll call Mathias on my way to the scene," I say, now alert.

"Udachi** . Do svidaniya***," Ivan concludes the call. Sleepiness must have caused him, like me, to unintentionally revert to his mother tongue.

My first order of buisness isn't to call Mathias, but to leave a note for Emil, explaining that something had come up suddenly. I quickly don regular clothes, as I'm too tired to work through my uniform. I leave the note on the kitchen table. I hurry out the door to my car. Once inside, I try to contact Mathias. Yes, I know that's incredibly stupid, but lack of sleep is doing all this.

Finally, after about six or seven calls, Mathias finally answers with a drowsy, "Hallo*?"

"God morgen til deg også****," I reply sarcastically.

"Hm, Lukas?" Mathias wonders aloud. "Why are you calling so early?"

"Ivan called a while ago. If you check your missed calls, about half of them are from him," I state. "I need you to meet up with me and Nicolae at the park ASAP."

"New case?"

"New case."

"I'm on the way." Mathias end sthe call.

I reach the park and, well, park. I exit my car, racing towards the crime scene. Running through the thick trees, I spot the shock of strawberry blond hair of my friend Nicolae. I approach him.

"Good morning Nicolae," I greet him.

"If only we could meet under better circumstances," Nicolae sighs. He flashes a smile. "Or at work." He looks around. "Where's Mathias?"

"He's supposedly on the way," I reply. "He wouldn't miss the begining of a new case. And by the way, we are meeting at work."

Nicolae nods, accepting my answer. He indicates a tanned, brown haired girl wearing a pigtails and a tracksuit. She has terror written all over her face. A typical reaction for someone who randomly stumbles upon a body. "Lukas, this is Angélique Mauvais. She found the body." He indicates a figure on the ground. He turns to Angélique as he sees my gaze and attention shift over to the body.

"Lukas is very serious about his job. He has a good eye for detail," Nicolae explains.

I carefully approach the body. I crouch down next to it, so I get a better look. The victim has short wavy brown hair, is wearing tattered clothes, and sports a bullet wound to the head. The body is facedown and I can't risk my fingerprints interfering with any clues.

"Nicolae," I call. "Do u have any gloves?"

"Yeah, I'll go get them." the Romanian man jogs away.

Although I can't turn the body over to see the face, or touch anything, I can still look around the scene. My eyes fall on Angélique. My curiousity overtakes me.

"How did you come across the body?" I inquire.

"I was out for my morning jog like I do every morning," she recounts. "I wasn't really paying attention to my surroundings and I tripped over the leg of this person. At first I thought whoever this is was asleep." She shudders. "Then I saw the blood. I called the police imediately and that nice man came. He told me to stay calm and tell him what happened. Then you came."

I hold my hand up to idicate that she can stop talking.

"Thank you for your story," I tell her.

Nicolae returns with a pair of non latex gloves.

"Here's your super-early-super-late birthday present, Lukas," he jokes.

I don't bother responding. I just pull the gloves on and carefully turn over the body. Immediatly, several thoughts spring to mind-_Male, most probably late teens. The bullet has an exit wound so it may still be nearby. So young for someone to die._ I can't help but think of my own little brother. I shove all thoughts out of my head. I must concentrate on the task at hand.

Angélique gasps.

"Hey guys!"

I groan. _Now _Mathias comes.

"Det handler om tid, Mathias*****," I snap at him. I turn to Nicolae. "We need to get the body to Francis and Roderich for identification and means of death. I see a bullet wound, but there may be other damage." I straighten up to my full height. "Not to mention, that we have a large job ahead of us checking out this scene."

The rest of the team arrives. Vash and Elizabeta, a tomboyish female who's married to the DNA specialist and is known to threaten Francis Bonnefoy (the coroner) and Gilbert Beilschmidt (the toxicology specialist) with her infamous skillet, put the body in a bag to be taken to the lab for inspection. They take Angélique with them. Tino and Berwald tape off the area so we could investigate. Honestly, my mind keeps wandering to the dead teenager. He barely looked older than my own brother.

"'S s'meth'n' wr'ng?" Berwald asks, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"Huh? Sorry, Berwald," I reply. "I can't stop thinking about that body. He doesn't look much older than Emil."

"Are you worried about Emil?" Tino questions, approaching us.

I nod. "A bit."

My friends know that I just said the biggest understatement of the century.

"Hey, guys, I think I found something!" Nicolae calls.

Mathias, Tino, Berwald, and I hurry to him. He lifts up a small metal object between his gloved fingers. A bloody bullet. I take the bullet from Nicolae, carefully placing it in an evidence bag. Mathias, Nicolae, and I sweep over the site. Finding no other clues, we take out leave. Little did we know, we had missed a major clue. One that is taken by someone who'd been spying on us the entire time.

"So much pain."

At the lab, Vash, Elizabeta, Nicolae, and I find ourselves in the morgue where Francis, the creepy French born coroner works. The corpse is covered from the hips down with a white sheet. The site of the boy's bare skin nauseates me. His chest is covered with scars and bruises.

"From the looks of it," Francis explains, "this boy looks about nineteen-years-old. I'd say that he's been dead for about eight hours, putting a time of death at around close to midnight." He yawns. Ivan called everyone in earlier than we normaly started work, so we're all _really _tired.

"These bruises on him," I say slowly. "Any sign of..."

"Non******," Francis replies. "But he's definately been abused."

Roderich enters the room carrying a file.

"How'd the DNA scan turn out?" Elizabeta asks.

Roderich opens the file with the information of the victim. "Toris Laurinaitis, age nineteen," he reads."There's almost nothing about him other than him being an orphan and having perfect grades throughout school. Public school of course. Apparently, once he turned eighteen, he left the orphanage, got a job, and rented out a cheap apartment with two other people."

My heart drops. We'd have to tell Toris's housemates of his death.

"Where do they live?" Vash asks.

"1990 Soviet Street."

"That's near Ivan's home," Nicolae remarks.

"Lukas, will you go with Vash to deliver the news?" Ivan requests, entering the room. I can't say no to my boss, so of course I agree. I can tell that Vash isn't too keen on going to deliver bad news.

"Do you know the people who live there?" I question.

"A bit," Ivan replies to everyone's surprise. "Living in that apartment are Eduard von Bock, age seventeen; Raivis Galante, age fifteen; and until last night, Toris Laurinaitis."

The shock of hearing the young ages of the residents of the apartment is etched on the faces of my collegues. It's hard to imagine such young boys having to live together. One of them is even the same age as Emil. This won't be easy for me. I know the same applies to Vash since he has his own little sister, an adorable little girl named Erika, who gets along well with Emil.

Vash and I take our leave to head over to Soviet Street where Toris's former housemates live. The street itself is a well-to-do area, aside from a small spot near the end, where the apartment is located. I could see how it was possible to afford it. I feel overdressed in a shabby place like this. Glancing over at my blond Swiss companion, I spot his own discomfort. We head up a rickety staircase to the third floor. Finding the right apartment number, I knock lightly on the door. For a moment, I hope Eduard and Raivis aren't home, so they wouldn't have to find out about Toris so quickly. My hopes are dashed when the door opens. A tall, blond young man wearing glasses stands at the open door, shock clearly visible at the arrival of two absolute strangers.

"Can I help you?" he asks, voice heavily accented. Estonian, maybe?

Vash quickly takes over. "My name is Officer Vash Zwingli and this is my collegue," he indicates me, "Agent Lukas Bondevik. We're with the crime lab. Are you Eduard von Bock?"

"Yes, I am Eduard von Bock," is the nervous reply. "I'm sorry, but I don't understand what the authorities would want from me, but please come in."

The interior of the apartment is not as bad as the exterior. It looks as though the inhabitants were at least _trying _to make it look like a home, attempting a homey atmosphere. Curled on a ratty sofa is a small blond reading a torn book.

"Raivis," Eduard says. The small boy looks up. "We have guests."

Raivis straightens out his slight form and slides his book under the couch. He rises from his seat, trembling.

"He's always nervous around strangers," Eduard explains quietly. Louder, he asks, "Would you like to take a seat? Do you want anything? Tea or coffee maybe?"

As tempting as the coffee offer seems, Vash and I are here for one reason. The moment of truth.

"Thank you for your offer, Mr. von Bock, but Officer Zwingli and I are here on official buisness," I explain. Feeling my nerves tense, I take a deep breath. "You and Raivis may want to sit down. Vash and I have a few questions for you."

Eduard complies by seating himself next to Raivis. Vash questions them about Toris, what he did as a job, what he was like, and others along those lines. Eduard answers all the questions. Then we reach a vital question: "When was the last time either of you saw him?"

Raivis pales, pulling his thin legs close to him. Eduard seems caught off guard.

"Yesterday," Eduard replies shakily. "He went to pick up some stuff. Why?" Panic rises in his eyes. "Did something happen? Is he okay?"

"I'm sorry," I apologize, prepared for announcing the inevitable. "But, Toris Laurinaitis was killed last night."

Raivis bursts into tears, trembling hard. Eduard's hands shake, but he's still somewhat composed.

"H-how d-did he d-d-die?" the latter asks.

"He was murdered," Vash responds.

Raivis's tears flow harder. Eduard finally lets out the tears.

"I'm sorry," I try to comfort, placing my hand on Raivis's shoulder. He swats my hand away. His blue eyes widen in terror as he curls into the fetal position, covering his head with his hands.

"I'm sorry!" he cries, catching both Vash and myself off guard. "I didn't mean too...please don't hurt me!" He flies into another bout of tears, sobbing heavily and barely stopping to breathe. Eduard holds him close, whispering in another language in an attempt to calm the crying boy. Raivis stops shaking. He'd cried himself unconcious. Eduard rubs the boy's back soothingly.

Vash and I silently agreed to take this as our cue to leave.

"My deepest condolences for the loss of your friend," Vash says. He holds out a card to Eduard. "Here are the numbers you can call to reach me or other members of the force."

"Who's the handwritten number?" Eduard asks, flipping over the card.

"Mine," I reply.

Vash and I bid Eduard, who keeps apologizing for not being able to see us to the door as he's stil holding Raivis, goodbye and exit the apartment.

"That was horrible," I remark once we're back in Vash's cruiser.

"I know," the Swiss man replies sadly. "I don't know what will happen to them now. They're both too young to live on their own. Not to mention that they'll be emotional wrecks after losing someone so close."

We drive in silence for a few minutes.

"Did you notice the Galante boy's reaction when I reached for his shoulder?" I inquire suddenly.

"He appeared to be terrified of you," Vash replies. "When I saw his reaction, I got the feeling that there's more to this new case that we're bargaining for."

"I agree."

Vash drops me off by headquarters and drives off to patrol the neighborhood.

"How'd it go?" Mathias asks as I plop down on a chair by a desk that, by the looks of it, is Nicolae's. Only he has four thousand pictures of his little brother, Vladimir, littering his desk. I admit, I have a few photos of myself with Emil. But, Arthur Kirkland (the day shift supervisor), Roderich, Gilbert Beilschmidt (toxicology specialist who loves to drink), Matthew Williams (our fingerprint specialistwho has a tendency to completely disappear), and Vash also have pictures of their younger siblings, so Nicolae and I aren't weird.

"Something's up," is all I say, my thoughts clouding my mind.

"Well, it's not every day that you find the body of a nineteen-year-old in a park."

"Don't even try to make a joke about that!" I snap, glaring at him. As an only child, Mathias doesn't understand what it means to have a brother or sister to really care about. He doesn't understand the pain Raivis and Eduard are in right now. Unfortunately, Mathias is an oblivious idiot, so after a few more insensitive comments/jokes, I finally get up and walk away, fed up with his childish antics.

"C'mon, Lukas," he calls after me. "I was only joking."

"That's your problem," I snap sharply, heading to the morgue. I don't know what compelled me to go, but I feel like I missed something.

"Lukas!"

I spin on my heel, coming face to face with an out of breath Tino.

"Tino," I gasp. "Are you okay?"

"We just got a call from Vash," the Finnish man replies. "He found another body."

* * *

*Hello (Norwegian/Danish)

**Good Luck (Russian)

***Good Bye (Russian)

****Good Morning to you too (Norwegian)

*****Its about time, Mathias (Norwegian)

******No (French) (No Google Translate used)


	4. Chapter 3: Second Death

**I love these quickie updates of my pet project~ **

**I feel like I'm doing the most typical cliches with the victims, but I bet you didn't count on Ivan being a good guy~**

**By the way, here's who has what job:**

**Day shift supervisor: Arthur**

**Coroner: Francis**

**DNA specialist: Roderich**

**Fingerprint specialist: Matthew**

**Technology specialist: Antonio**

**Toxicology specialist: Gilbert**

**Field investigators: Lukas, Mathias, Nicolae**

**Police officers: Elizabeta, Vash, Tino, Berwald**

**Police captain: Ivan (Bet ya didn't see that one coming...Unless you read the last chapter...)**

**Disclaimer: Yo! Iggy! Can you do the disclaimer?**

**England: Why can't you do it?**

**Me:...I'm too lazy~**

**England: Fine. *Sighs & takes the script from my hand* AnonymousSanSama does not own Hetalia. If she did, Norway, England, & Romania would be major characters. *Looks at me* And I'm not a major character already? I'm a member of the bloody Allies!**

**Me: R & R!**

Tino drives like a madman when he's tense. I don't blame him. It's the second body in twenty four hours. In short, thanks to the lights, sirens, and Tino's crazy driving, we reach the new crime scene in about five minutes flat. Berwald pulls up behind us with Nicolae folowed by Elizabeta and Mathias. We find Vash kneeling over the corpse of a teenage girl. Her short blond hair is matted by blood seeping out of the bullet hole in her head. Her white shirt is also stained from a bullet wound to her chest. Her pink mini skirt and boots are covered in dirt. My stomach tightens when I realize that she looks about the same age as our last victim, Toris.

"Who would be sick enough to murder a teenage girl?" I hear Tino asking Vash. Vash shakes his head somberly in response.

I approach the body. Crouching down, I examine it closely. I find something quite...strange.

"This victim is male," I announce awkwardly.

Elizabeta giggles. Nicolae cracks a tiny smile and Mathias bursts into a roar of laughter. Vash clocks him on the back of his head to get him to shut up. I notice that the latter's cheeks are slightly flushed, probably from also thinking that this teen was a girl. Honestly, we all did, so he's not alone.

Music begins to play. The song sounds familiar, so I sift through my memory trying to place the song. I'm ashamed when I'm able to give a name to the tune. _Barbie Girl_ by Aqua. I hear it everyday blaring from Elizabeta's office, which is located right next to mine. I feel my cheeks get hotter as I flush with humiliation at the knowledge.

"You okay, Lukas?" Mathias asks.

"I'm fine," I mumble, looking for the source of the music with my gloved hands. I discover a hot pink cell phone. I flip it open, answering the call. A familiar voice flows from the other end. Eduard von Bock

"Feliks? Finally you answered. I'm sorry, but I have bad news to tell you."

"Eduard," I say carefully.

"Huh? Agent Bondevik? Why do you have Feliks's phone?" I catch the notes of panic in his voice. "Is he okay?!"

"Feliks is dead," I explain.

"He and Toris were best friends," Eduard says after a brief pause.

I reach an awkward question. "Um, were Toris and Feliks..." I break off. I feel too weird to ask.

"Is Feliks in girl's clothes?" Eduard questions.

"Yes."

Eduard sighs. "Feliks has a tendency to crossdress. He and Toris were just best friends. Nothing more." I could tell that he's on the verge of tears.

"You called Feliks to tell him of Toris's death, didn't you?" I inquire.

"...Yes. I wasn't as close with him as Toris was, but Feliks was a pretty good person. He really cared about Toris. I'm sorry to hear that he's dead." I can almost see the tears falling.

"Eduard," I say suddenly. "Can you and Raivis come down to the station for questioning?"

Silence.

"I don't drive," Eduard says curtly.

"I can come get you," I offer. Something about this teen really gnaws at the back of my mind, but I can't place my discomfort. All I know is that something about his demeanor bothers me. Emil and Mathias would say I'm thinking too deep into things, but Arthur and Nicolae would argue that I'm being observant.

"...Alright."

"I'll be over in about fifteen-twenty minutes." I end the call there. I turn to the rest of the team. "Vash, Elizabeta, get this body to Francis and Roderich. Tino, Berwald, Mathias, Nicolae, continue searching for clues."

"What are you going to do?" Mathias inquires suspiciously.

"I'm going with Vash and Elizabeta back to the lab. From there, I'm picking up my car and bringing in the former housemates of our first victim in for questioning. Apparently, our two victims knew each other well."

"Good luck," the others say as Vash, Elizabeta, and I take our leave. Good luck. I've been hearing those words so many times in the past few days.

Once we return, I bid Vash and Elizabeta a quick "see you later." I pull my keys out of my pocket and enter my car. I hurry over to Eduard and Raivis's home on Soviet Street. The two boys exit the building. For the first time, I truly notice just how thin the younger boy is. His shirt is almost slipping off his shoulder. His face looks slightly sunken and there are dark shadows under his wide blue eyes. Eduard himself looks quite thin, but nothing like Raivis. He also sports dark shadows beneath his eyes. Just what kind of lives do these two live?

We drive in silence back to the station. While I was waiting for Eduard and Raivis to come out of their home, I had sent a text to Tino to help with the questioning. As the fiendliest member of the force, Tino tends to be called for interrogations. _Everyone _winds up confessing when questioned by him.

Once we reach the station, I lead the two boys inside. Raivis looks around, bewildered by the amount of people walking around. He's trembling violently again. I reassure him that everything is okay. We enter my office, where Eduard and Raivis nervously seat themselves on the chairs on one side of my organized desk. I settle on the large leather chair across from the teenage boys, relieved to finally be off my feet. My posture still remains one hundred percent perfect. If only Emil could learn to keep his back straight for at least two minutes.

There's a knock on my door.

"Lukas? It's Tino," comes the high voice on the other side of the door.

"You may enter, Tino," I respond. I turn to the scared boys. "Don't worry, Tino's the friendliest person you can possibly meet." I silently add to myself, _Aside from Antonio_.

The blond Finnish man enters with his giant smile plastered on his face.

"Eduard, Raivis, meet Officer Tino

Väinämöinen," I introduce.

Tino's eyes widen as they fall on Eduard.

"Eduard?" he gasps.

"Tino?" Eduard seems surprised. "I didn't know that you joined the police force."

"It wasn't long after the last time I spoke to you," Tino explains. He sees my bewildered face. Or at least what my friends call my bewildered face. "Eduard and I worked the same shift in that electric appliance store."

"The creepy one with the Russian owner?" I question.

Tino nods. "We became pretty close." He adds silently so only I hear, "while cowering in the corner." Hopefully the questioning can go smoothly if Eduard is as close with Tino as the latter claims.

I clear my throat. "To get to buisness," I state firmly. "Two people that you know personally have been mrdered in less than twenty four hours. We're afraid that either of you may be a target for this killer next. Is there anyone who'd want to hurt any of you?"

Eduard wrings his hands nervously. Raivis buries his head in his knees. Eduard pushes his glasses up his nose and nervously replies, "Not that we can think of but-" he cuts off as Raivis begins to softly sob.

"Get Antonio," I whisper to Tino. "He's pretty good with kids. Eduard's too worried about Raivis to answer us properly."

Tino nods, hurrying out of the room. I feel a dull pounding in my head. I've been awake longer than usual. It hits me that I haven't even been home since about a half past six this morning. Emil's probably ready to kill me at this point. Tino returns with the always smiling Antonio.

"Hola mucacho*," he greets Raivis. "I'm Antonio. Would you like something to eat?"

Raivis shakes his head.

"C'mon, you must be hungry," Antonio prods. "What about bueno tomates**?"

"Raivis, minna koos temaga. Ma tulen okei***," Eduard says quietly to Raivis. "Iet. Es būs labi.****"

Raivis uncurls himslf. Glancing nervously at Antonio, he rises from his seat. The smiling Spaniard holds out his hand, inviting the young boy to come with him. Raivis accepts Antinonio's hand, trembling.

"Vámonos*****!" Antonio cheers, marching out of the room with a terrified Raivis.

"Eduard," Tino says softly. "It's vital that you tell us anything you know. It's for your and Raivis's safety."

Eduard peers down at the floor.

"I'll tell you everything."

* * *

* Hello, kid (Spanish)

** Good tomatoes (Spanish)

*** Raivis, go with him. I'll be okay (Estonian)

**** Go. I'll be fine (Latvian)

***** Let's go! (Spanish) (My own kowledge of Spanish used)


	5. Chapter 4:Mystery of the Baltic Brothers

**Well, I guess it's time for the backstory of the poor orphans. To be honest, I had a blast writing this chapter. I love writing sad, dramatic backstories. **

**Norway: You are messed up**

**Me:what? I'm a crazy writer. You've seen what I've done~**

**Norway:...Unfortunately. Did you really have to kill me in your other fic?**

**Me: *Poker face* Yes. It was the alternate ending my buddy came up with. *Looks around* Hey! Prussia! Come do the disclaimer!**

**Prussia: Kesesese, okay. *Reads the paper I handed him* Hetalia does not belong to AnonymousSanSama since she is not as awesome as the awesome Prussia! Kesesese. If she did, France would be more mellow and almost nothing like he is now.**

**Erik: You really aren't crazy about how perverted the Frenchie is, are you**

**Me: I find it funny, but not all of it. *Shudders* Bloodbaths *stares off***

**Erik: *pokes me* Please tell me I did not just break my creator**

Toris and Eduard looked up from their chores. Anya Braginskaya entered the room carrying a sleeping child in a blanket.

"Who is that, Ms. Braginskaya?" Toris asked.

"Raivis Galante," the blond woman replied. "At least according to the embroidery on this blanket. Katyusha just found him on the doorstep."

"It's like something out of a book!" Eduard claimed excitedly. "Is he magical?"

"_Nyet!*_" Anya snapped angrily. "Eduard von Bock, I will confiscate your books if you continue to speak like that."

Eduard shrank into a corner.

"Finish your chores," Anya commanded turning on her heel. She exited the room.

Toris smiled.

"A new kid here," he said. "It'll be exciting."

Eduard wasn't sure. He thought it would be hard for such a young child to live in this home. Anya Braginskaya and her half-sister Natalya Arlovskaya were both slave drivers that worked the children of the orphanage to the bone. When either woman wouldn't get her way, they tended to become a little violent. Toris and Eduard received the brunt of their torture. Eduard feared for the safety of the new child.

"Where do you think he was taken?" Eduard asked.

"Probably to Ms. Yekaterina," Toris replied. "She'll make sure he's healthy before settling him in."

"I hope he'll be okay here," Eduard mused more to himself.

Little Raivis was anything but okay at the moment. He'd been abandoned several hours ago in the dead of the winter and was running a high fever. Katyusha wasn't sure that the eight-year-old boy would survive the night. She'd been a nurse at the orphanage for as long as she could remember, but never saw anything like the condition this child was in.

"How is he, Katyusha?" Anya questioned.

"Not well," the short silver haired Ukrainian woman replied sadly. "He's so weak and sick, I'm afraid he won't survive the night."

"Do what you can," the blond Russian commanded forcefully. She didn't care that Yekaterina was older. 'Survival of the fittest' remained as Anya's motto. She normally didn't care much for ill children, but something about this one tugged at her ice encased heart. Maybe it was the boy's

porcelain skin that reminded her of the pure white snow of her home. Whatever it was, Anya didn't know and she wasn't happy about it.

Meanwhile, Toris and Eduard had completed their chores, settling on the beds in the giant bedroom to catch up on reading. Eduard continuesly glanced at the door, checking to see if either of the Braginski sisters would come in. He wanted to ask if the child was okay. He felt he had more worries than a ten-year-old should.

`Natalya entered the room. Immediately, every boy in the room scrambled off their beds to stand up in respect for Ms. Arlovskaya. The intimidating Belarusian woman demanded the respect she claimed to deserve.

"Good evening, Ms. Arlovskaya," the boys chorused in unison.

Natalya huffed. The boys didn't sound like they meant their words. The girls in the other bedroom at least had more sense to pretend they mean their words instead of deadpanning them like the boys.

"Is the new boy okay?" Eduard asked as the platinum haired Belarusian passed his bed.

Natalya didn't bother responding.

After several days, Raivis had gotten over his fever and after a few weeks, he'd completely recovered, joining the rest of the orphaned children. Toris, Eduard, and a boy of Polish decent, Feliks Łukasiewicz, had taken a liking to the little boy. They'd learnt that Raivis was older than he looked, due to malnutrition his whole life. The trio had also discovered that the little eight-year-old Latvian boy was quite a klutz. He seemed to be afraid of his own shadow at times. Many nights, Raivis would wake up some of the other boys with his crying.

"Shhh, it's alright, Raivis," Toris had soothed many times in English and Lithuanian. "No one's going to hurt you. You're okay."

This had happened many times, getting on Anya and Natalya's nerves. Katyusha always told them that he'd gone through much, being orphaned his entire life with only a name and nationality, but they didn't heed to their eldest sister's words. Anya had beaten Raivis, age ten at the time, senseless one night for disturbing her sleep. It was then that fourteen-year-old Toris and twelve-year-old Eduard began formulating a plan to take Raivis away from the orphanage. Several weeks after, Natalya had gotten wind about the plan, so she retaliated by tying Toris tightly to the orphanage. She had a strong feeling that he wouldn't try to run away. She'd figured that the plan wouldn't go through without the leader, the fourteen-year-old didn't have to try so hard since a Swedish man and his Finnish girlfriend came to adopt Eduard. The twelve-year-old attempted to persuade the couple into adopting Raivis as well, but they insisted they could only adopt one child. Eduard had agreed to their terms, leaving Toris, Feliks, and Raivis.

"Kā viņš varēja pamest mūs?**" Raivis cried into Toris's chest the night of Eduard's departure.

"That was, like, so totally uncool," Feliks muttered under his breath.

Eduard knew what the others had thought of him. He knew that they probably thought that he'd abandoned his friends. That he'd abandoned little, vulnerable Raivis. That he'd completely disregarded the initial plan. Eduard actually had a plan of his own. He wanted to be on the outside so it'd be easier to get Raivis away faster.

His idea was put into motion the fateful night that his adoptive parents had been killed in a car accident. Their car had been struck by a drunk truck diver. No one survived.

Eduard, age fourteen, took this as a sign to assist in the great escape. He'd thrown rock at the window of the boys' room on the second floor to get the attention of Toris and Feliks.

"What do you want, Eduard?" Toris snapped after he opened the window. "Did you come to gloat about your good fortune of getting out of here?"

"No," Eduard responded slowly. "I came to take Raivis. I know where we can stay. Not many people know of my step-parents' deaths, so I can still use their apartment. The rent isn't bad and I have what's left of their money."

"...I'll go get him," Toris said after deliberating.

He left from the window and soon returned with a pale faced twelve-year-old with curly blond hair and beautiful wide blue eyes. Raivis Galante. He'd grown up so much in the two years Eduard had been gone.

"Raivis, I'm sorry for leaving you for so long," Eduard nearly cried in a mixture of happiness and guilt. Happiness, for Raivis will finally be free. Guilt, for it had taken so long to get him out.

Raivis had no belongings aside from the blanket he'd been left in when he arrived seven years earlier. He was still extraordinarily small and light for his age, Eduard realized when he noticed the ease of how Toris and Feliks were able to help Raivis out the window. With a small cry, Raivis slipped out of the grips of Toris and Feliks, who watched as he plunged to the ground in horror. Luckily, Eduard was directly beneath the Latvian pre-teen and was able to catch him before he could be wounded. There was a collective sigh of relief from the four boys. Feliks began giggling like a little girl. Soon, Toris followed the suit and finally Eduard and Raivis. For four years they'd planned on getting Raivis out of the orphanage. Finally, they had succeeded!

Eduard grasped Raivis's thin hand and ran.

"I'm sorry for leaving you for so long, Raivis," Eduard apologized, puffing for air as he sprinted down the streets with Raivis to the apartment he lived in farther down Soviet Street. It wasn't the best looking apartment, but it had a homey feel to it. His step-mother had decorated it with trinkets from her and husband's homes. All Raivis had to make himself feel at home was his blaket. Dark maroon with a white stripe down the middle sporting his name embroidered in white on the maroon.

"Make yourself at home," Eduard told Raivis once they entered the apartment.

Raivis remained at the doorway, clinging to his blanket and trembling.

"Is something wrong?" Eduard asked, worried.

"Man pietrūkst Toris un Feliks!***" the Latvian wailed.

Tears stung Eduard's eyes. He really never had been there for the boy. He clenched his fists, deciding right then and there that he'd take better care of him. Little did he know that Raivis was hiding something that would change his and Toris's lives forever.

Eduard had gotten a job working for a creepy Russian man, but quickly befriended the other young clerk, a Finnish male by the name of Tino. The two were both terrified out of their wits of their boss, but both managed to keep their spirits. Tino constantly spoke of his friends who dropped by every now and then. Eduard prefered to be out of the room whenever they came, so he'd never seen them.

Raivis was out of the apartment a lot. Eduard had no idea what he did, but never inquired about it. That is, until one night, Raivis, age thirteen, entered the apartment on a stormy night bloody and covered in bruises. Like a mother hen, Eduard fussed over the wounded youth. He noticed how the Latvian flinched whenever he, Eduard, lifted his hand or touched him.

"Raivis," Eduard began slowly. "How did you get so injured? Where were you?" He felt very worried.

Raivis shifted his gaze away from Eduard, refusing to respond. Eduard decided not to pursue in the matter, but began leaving rules for a curfew for Raivis, who hadn't spoken since before that fateful night when he had lost Eduard's trust.

Soon enough, Eduard, age sixteen, and Raivis, age fourteen, were finally joined by Toris, who had just celebrated his eighteenth birthday and decided to gain custody over his friends, creating the trio who took on the nickname of the "Baltic Brothers," refering to their respective homes. Toris informed his "brothers" that Feliks had been adopted himself the year before, but promised to keep in touch.

Only a few days since Toris arrived did the phone calls begin. Every night did the threatening calls from blocked numbers come. Toris brushed them off as prank calls. Eduard was a little afraid of them. Raivis cried for hours every time one came. Toris and Eduard were worried about him, but to the present day, neither of them knew what was wrong. Toris had requested Feliks's help, but just mere days after that conversation, had Toris been killed, closely followed by Feliks.

* * *

*No (Russian) (No Google Translate. Just my limited knowledge of Russian)

**How could he leave us? (Latvian)

***I miss Toris and Feliks (Latvian)

**Me: Well, I'm okay**

**Erik: *Sighs in relief***

**Me: You lucked out this time, Kors**

**Erik: Sorry?**

**Me:*fangirl sighs* You know I'm a sucker for your accent~**

**Erik: You are? It's Norwegian. Not British**

**Me:I know, but still...**

**Erik: *Facepalm* Review! Please. I beg of you. She sulks in her little emo corner when she doesn't get reviews. You don't want to know what goes on in the emo corner**


	6. Chapter 5: The Case Deepens

**Wait no longer people, my mood is good!**

**Erik: Thank you to the fantastisk people who reviewed & kept this nutjob out of the emo corner. Those people include *checks a paper* AllyMCainey, alohapizzagoat, & D1g1m0ncrazy. *Looks up* Three? That's a nice number, but I was expecting more**

**Me: Erik Matteus Kors, it's barely been a day**

**Erik: Ekte. Actually, that makes it more impressive**

**Me: Ja~ *facepalms* disclaimer**

**Erik: *runs backstage & comes back with a tied up Britian***

**Britian: Why do you want me?! **

**Me: Good choice, Erik. Britian. Disclaimer. Now.**

**Britian: *reads the script Erik hold in front of him* Hetalia does not belong to this bloody foolish girl (Me: Hey! Not in the script. Erik: Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeelllllll ~) If it did, it wouldn't be nearly as funny or popular as it is now.**

**Erik: *smiles sweetly, but there is an evil glint in his beautiful, royal blue eyes* Enjoy. R & R**

Tino and I stare dumbfounded at this turn of events. Neither of us expected to hear such a tale to come out of the mouth of the seventeen-year-old Estonian. Such a horrible story. I'd passed the orphanage he spoke of many times. I'd seen the three sisters on several occasions. Only two of them radiated any danger. Those were Anya Braginskaya and Natalya Arlovskaya. Katyusha Braginskaya, from when I'd met her, seemed sweet enough.

"Eduard, what were the phone calls about?" Tino asks softly.

Eduard begins to answer, but a bloodcurdling cry cuts it short.

"Raivis!" Eduards panics, running out of the room. Tino and I follow. Even though Eduard has never been here before, he has an easy time locating Raivis since the young Latvian's yell was heard by many of the others. We follow the commotion, finding Raivis and Antonio in the latter's lab. Raivis is curled in a corner, sobbing his heart out, terrified. I glance at Antonio.

"I don't know," he whispers, dejected. "Ivan came in to check on my progress in some things I'd been looking up for him and all of a sudden, this kid just freaked out. He won't let anyone near him."

"Thanks for your efforts, Antonio, but let's leave this to someone with younger siblings," I advise.

I slowly approach Raivis.

"Stay away! he cries, sobbing even harder.

"Excuse me," another voice cuts in. "Out of the way. Let me through."

I turn to see Arthur Kirkland, the shift supervisor.

"Lukas, what's going on here?" he questions sharply.

"Give me a minute," I request.

Arthur peers over at Raivis. He turns to everyone else. "Antonio, go fetch Gilbert and Matthew." He raises his voice to command, "Everyone else, back to work! There's no time for lollygagging."

"Pfft, 'lollygagging'," Antonio laughs, walking off.

The British man turns to me. "You're coming with me. Leave the boy to Matt and Gil."

I sigh, no choice but to comply. Arthur can be a complete hard head, so it's best not to argue with him. I follow him to his office. He sits me down by his desk before seating himself across from me.

"Lukas Bondevik, when I advised Ivan to put you on this case I didn't expect to have a crying child here," he says. "You know that this team has a reputation to keep."

I explain everything that's happened so far in the case. Finding the body of Toris Laurinaitis. The first encounter with Eduard von Bock and Raivis Galante. Discovering Feliks Łukasiewicz's body. I finally end with Eduard's story of the orphanage.

"Do you feel like this case is causing you to bite off more than you can chew?" Arthur inquires after a pause.

I hesistate. "...Maybe," I quietly admit, ashamed that the words even left my mouth. I lock eyes with Arthur. "But I'm not giving up on this case. We've come much to far at this point. Eduard just gave us names of possible suspects."

Arthur smiles. "I'm glad I put you on this case and happier that you're not giving up."

"Thank you, Arthur. I'm glad you still have faith in me." I rise from the seat. "If you'll excuse me, I want to check up on Raivis. I'm afraid that Gilbert will say something weird and scare him."

Arthur laughs. "But on the bright side, he's good with kids, so he'll be a little more careful with his words." With that, he dismisses me from the office. I make my way back to Antonio's computer lab. Inside, I find the blond Canadian fingerprint specialist, Matthew Williams, talking softly to Raivis while Gilbert, the albino self-proclaimed "Awesome Prussian" (long story) toxicology specialist, rubs the still sobbing boy's back.

"Gilbert, Antonio," I say entering the room.

They look up.

"Hey, Luke," Gilbert greets, smiling.

"Hola amigo,*" Antonio smiles.

I croutch down in front of Raivis.

"Raivis," I say carefully. "Are you okay?"

Raivis nods slightly. "I-I'm s-sorry for causing s-s-so much t-tr-trouble."

"Don't worry," I reassure him. "It's fine. You're not a burden for us."

Raivis wraps his thin arms around me, sobbing into my chest. Much to my surprise, I'd gained his trust. I can't fail him at any cost. I continue Gilbert's job of soothingly rubbing the teen's back.

"Hey, Gil," Antonio pipes up. "Did you hurt yourself? There's blood on your hand."

Gilbert peers at his hand, which is in fact covered in blood, in astonishment.

"I don't remember wounding my awesome hand," he explains.

I feel something warm and wet beneath my fingers. I shift my gaze to Raivis's back. Panic seizes, but I must keep my cool, not to alarm the Latvian. The back of his shirt is matted with fresh blood from a wound on his upper back.

"Antonio, do you have a first aid kit in here?" I ask. "Raivis is bleeding," I mouth.

Antonio hurries to a cabinet and pulls out a first aid kit.

"He must've hit his back against the corner of my desk," he says.

"Raivis," I lightly shake the boy. "I need you to take your shirt off."

He peers up at me, his blue eyes blood-shot from all the crying, his face heavily flushed. His lower lip quivers.

"P-please d-do-don't make m-me," he stutters pleadingly.

"Raivis, you have an open wound on your back," Gilbert explains. Nice job, Gilbert, blowing the whole "don't mention the open wound out loud" plan.

After some deliberation, Raivis finally allows to let us care for his injury, as long as the door is locked and there's no way for anyone to see in. We agree to his strange terms. Antonio locks the door and closes the blinds on all the windows. We realize why he requested such crazy terms once his shirt is off.

Littering his back and chest are countless scars and healing bruises.

"Raivis," I gasp. "What happened to you?"

Raivis bursts into a new bout of tears.

Antonio cleans and bandages the shallow cut that we'd discovered. Gilbert holds Raivis close to him. I text Tino to take Eduard home. I don't tell him exact details, but enough that will satisfy his curiosity.

"Raivis," I repeat. "Please tell us what happened. We need to know so we can help you."

"Th' ph'ne c'lls," Ravis mumbles.

"The what?" Gilbert asks.

"The phone calls," Raivis repeats more clearly.

"Eduard told me and Tino about mysterious phone calls you've received. He never told us the contents of them," I explain more to Antonio and Gilbert than Raivis.

"Someone kept calling me," Raivis wimpers. "He knew of my past. My bad luck. He knew of the injuries that had been inflicted over the years. He forced me to keep the contents of the calls secret. He knew where I lived. He said he'd hurt Toris and Eduard if I didn't listen."

"He?" I inquire.

"I didn't know who it was," Raivis explains. "But I followed his instructions. Whenever I wouldn't follow them exactly, he'd send someone to hurt me."

I pull out my phone, calling Tino.

"Haloo?**" the Finnish man answers.

"Tino, are you still with Eduard?" I ask quickly.

"Yes."

"Good. Stay with him. I'm going to call Nicolae to stay with you, him, and Raivis to keep them safe." I add quietly, so as to not scare Raivis, "I have a bad feeling that something big is headed our way and it may not be so good."

"Ymmärrä. Juttelen myöhemmin***" Tino ends the call.

I call Nicolae, giving him a quick rundown and instructions. Sure, I'm not the one who's _supposed _to give instructions to anyone, but Arthur put a lot on my shoulders. I guess it sort of sucks to be close friends with your supervisor. He puts way too much faith in me.

"Raivis, you're going to go home," I explain to the boy. "My friends Nicolae and Tino will be there to keep you and Eduard company."

He nods. I request for Gilbert to lead him out of the lab to wait for Nicolae to come get him. I turn to Antonio.

"Can you do me a favor?" I ask.

"¡Claro! ¿Qué necesita, amigo mío?****" Antonio responds.

"Can you do some research on Anya Braginskaya and Natalya Arlovaskya?" I don't bother asking about Katyusha, since she's the only decent one between the three.

"No problem."

"Thank you." I exit the room. Leaning against the wall, I sigh.

Will this case ever end?

* * *

*Hello friend (Spanish) (No Google Translate. Just what I learned in class)

**Hello (Finnish)

***Understood. Talk to you later. (Finnish)

****Sure! What do you need, my friend? (Spanish)

* * *

**Erik: Oooooh, getting interesting I see~**

**Matteuksen: Yes. It really is *smiles as sweetly as the Nordic country he's from* Review please~**


	7. Chapter 6: Missing

**Gahhhh! Updates will probably begin to slow down. It's starting to really catch up with me now -_-"**

**Erik: I assume you're referring to the fact that you're in middle of typing chapter 11**

**Drake:You really are unorganized when it comes to the pace between your uploading and typing**

**Me: I see you're as blunt as always, Drake. But yes, you hit the nail on the head**

**Matteuksen: You'll be ahead soon~**

**Drake: Technically, she ****_is _****ahead, but she's losing her well-kept pace**

**Erik: Ouch**

**Me: Yep. Hey, Drake, are you willing to wrestle an Icelander into doing the disclaimer?**

**Drake: Why an Icelander? Why not a Canadian?**

**Me:Nationalistic much? Fine, fine, fine.**

**Drake:*casually walks away & comes back with Canada***

**Canada:*says the disclaimer, but it's too low for anyone to hear***

**Me:*grabs the script & hands it to Drake* C'mon, you speak five languages. Impress people**

**Drake: *sighs* If you insist. Hetalia does not belong to AnonymousSanSama. Nous devrions être reconnaissants pour ce (We should be thankful for that.) För om hon gjorde det, skulle världen bli kaos (For if she did, the world would be in chaos.) V bukvalʹnom smysle (Quite literally.) Además, los países bálticos, los asiáticos, y los países nórdicos tendrían más Screentime y las apariencias (Plus the Baltics, Asians, and Nordics would have more screentime and appearances.) *Looks at me* Happy?**

**Me:I barely understood what you said, but let's just say I am**

**Erik & Matteuksen:*trying not to laugh as Matteuksen understood the Russian & they both understood the Swedish***

I finally arrive home. It's not late, but I've been working non-stop for over twelve hours. Emil must be so furious that I'd be out for so long without even calling him. I drag myself into my home. Collapsing on the sofa in the living room, the weight of the entire day comes crashing down on me like a ton of bricks.

"Lukas?" Emil calls from upstairs.

"I'm home," I respond tiredly.

I hear two sets of footsteps come running down the stairs. Wait, two? I tense, reaching towards my gun. I freeze when I see who else is here once Emil enters the living room. His companion is a girl with short blond hair and green eyes. Erika, Vash's little sister. Despite her sweet face, she's just as skilled with a gun as her over-paranoid brother.

"Where were you all day?" Emil immediately inquires sharply.

"Work," I reply curtly.

"For over twelve hours?" I pick up the disbelief in his tone. "I heard that Ivan could be a slave driver, but this is ridiculous."

"Not unless you come across two dead bodies and two terrified teenagers carrying horrible pasts."

"I already filled them in," says a new voice.

Vash enters. I sigh, "When and how did you get into my house?"

"A couple of hours ago. Emil called Erika to come visit," Vash explains. "I wasn't planning on leaving her alone with your brother."

"Are you implying something about my brother?"

"Not at all."

I shoot him a disbelieving gaze.

"Sorry."

Noticing my immense fatigue, Vash ushers the two younger teens out of the room. He mouths to me, "Go get some sleep. Now." I know he's not giving me an option., so I head up to my room for a quick nap. An hour or two later, I'm woken up by the annoying buzzing of my phone. My vision is bleary from sleep, but I manage to read the caller ID. I groan at the name. Mathias.

"Hello?" I croak.

"Dude!" the obnoxious Dane cries. "You sound horrible! Are you okay? Do you feel well? Are you sick? Are yo-"

"Shut up!" I snap. "You just woke me up."

"...Oh."

"If you have nothing intelligent to say, I'm hanging up." Not bothering to wait for an answer, I end the call.

The scent of something cooking reaches my nose. I inhale deeply. Could it be kjøttboller*? My stomach rumbles. When was the last time I ate? Did I even have any coffee today? Sifting through the events of the day, I realize my first answer is I didn't eat anything all day and my second, unfortunately, is no. How did I function for over twelve hours without any coffee?

There's a light knock on my door.

"Yes?" I call.

"It's Vash," comes the voice on the other side.

"Enter."

The blond Swiss enters my bedroom. His green eyes sweep over the interior. He's probably wondering how I keep my room so impeccably clean with a job like the one I have.

"You don't have to act like you're still at work," Vash says.

I scoff. "This is coming from the man who taught his little sister how to wield a gun as soon as he could."

This causes Vash to crack a smile. "You need to learn to calm down."

"I'm not the only one."

"Are you up for coming down for something to eat?" Vash asks. "You're brother is making k-kj- some type of meatball."

"Kjøttboller*?" I supply.

"Yeah, that."

"Of course I'm coming down. I haven't eaten all day."

Vash raises his eyebrows. "Not even coffee?" There's a touch of disbelief in his voice.

"Not even coffee."

I pull myself out of bed, my clothes completely wrinkled at this point. For once, I really couldn't care less. Vash and I head back down.

"Will you and Erika be joining us for dinner?" I inquire.

"If you insist." Cheapskate.

We enter the kitchen where Emil and Erika are already seated by the island, eating. They almost look like a little couple sitting there. I quickly shove the thought out of my head. Vash would shoot me with every single one of his guns if he knew that I even thought that for a moment.

I seat myself next to Emil, poking his back so he'd sit up straight for once. He glares at me. I ignore it. Vash settles next to Erika, protectively close.

"So where were you really?" Emil interrogates me.

"Work."

"For over twelve hours?"

"Yes."

"How much does a field investigator do already?"

My palm connects with my face. I wind up launching into a long explanation of my job that Emil's probably only half listening to, if at all.

"Did you find out anything from the boys?" Vash asks.

"Have you ever been in the Soviet House?" I respond with a question of my own.

"I can't say I have, but a few of our own were raised there." Okay, I did not expect that. "And their siblings."

"Who?"

"Elizabeta, Nicolae, Vladimir, and Gilbert," Vash lists. "Well, Gilbert has a really weird story of why he was there and his brother, Ludwig, wasn't."

"Gilbert always has a weird story. I don't know how Ludwig deals with him," I remark. "And by siblings, you're only referring to Vladimir."

Vash nods in agreement. I'm shocked that our siblings have decided to refrain from adding their two cents on this conversation. Knowing Emil, he's probably fighting hard to keep his mouth shut.

"Emil, Erika, can you two finish eating in the dining room?" I request. "I want to speak to Vash alone."

Emil looks annoyed that he won't be able to hear all about the case. Erika agrees willingly. They both rise from their seats and exit the kitchen. Emil casts me a ticked off look. He's so independent as I'm almost never home. I feel like such a terrible brother. I sigh at my predicament.

"Do you think I'm a horrible brother for never being home?" I wonder out loud.

Vash seems shocked. "Why do you ask?" he counters. "Is this what you wanted to talk about?" I sense the notes of disbelief in his voice.

"No, I want to talk about the case," I explain quickly. "I just asked since Emil seems annoyed with me."

Vash sighs, not knowing how on earth he got into this mess. "I guess it depends on how close you are with Emil. Erika and I are very close, so she's sad when I'm not home, but she manages to deal with it well. Roderich says that Johann used to constantly call him because he really wanted him home so he could paint while listening to Roderich playing the piano. Peter and Vladimir don't seem to mind at all when Arthur and Nicolae aren't around." He shrugs. "It depends on who you are, your sibling's personality, and the relationship you have with them."

I sigh. I fail as an elder brother. Deciding to change the subject, though I brought it up to begin with, I ask, "What do you think of the newest developments in the case?"

"Tough to say," Vash admits. "We only know what those boys have told us. Raivis is making me nervous though. He may still be hiding something."

"I have a feeling that he knows the person who was calling, but doesn't want to admit it."

"Why would he protect the identity of someone like that?"

"Because that someone still has power over him."

"You don't think"

"I do." My indigo eyes lock with Vash's green. "Call Antonio and tell him to attempt to delve into Raivis's history. If anyone can find out anything about that Latvian, it's Antonio."

Vash pulls out his phone to send off a text to Antonio. I offer that Vash and Erika stay overnight, and I receive the unsurprising "yes" as an answer.

I sleep in a little later than usual. I peer at my phone, noticing the lit screen. I'd apparently missed four calls from Tino... Wait! Four missed calls from Tino?! Before I have any time to panic, the phone buzzes. Another call.

"Hello?" I answer.

"Lukas! Tarvitsen apua heti! Tämä ei ole hyvä! Tämä ei ole hyvä! Aiomme olla niin paljon vaivaa! Me epäonnistui!**" is the rushed Finnish reply.

"Ro deg ned,***" I say. "What happened?"

"Eduard is dead!" Tino cries, near tears. "Nicolae's been badly injured. I was only out for ten minutes!"

My heart pounds in my chest.

"Is Raivis okay?" I ask, fearing the answer.

"...He's gone."

Dang it.

* * *

*According to Wikipedia: "meatballs: A rougher version of the Swedish meatballs. Served with mashed potatoes and cream-sauce or sauce espagnol depending on localization." Use your imagination as to what they had it with

**Lukas! I need help right away! This isn't good! This isn't good! We are going to be in so much trouble! We failed! (Finnish)

***Calm down (Norwegian)

* * *

**Cliffhanger FTW!**

**Okay, so this chapter was a calmer one to take a breather from everything and learn a bit more of the relationship between Lukas & Emil. Plus it's also a bit of a lighter tone with some humor (including references to Switzy being a cheap skate & Lukas's love for coffee.) Yes, I had to torture my beloved readers with me announcing slower updates as the story reaches its peak. As Italy Veneziano says, "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" So this is the part where I basically beg for some forgiveness. So please forgive me.**

**Drake: You done yet?**

**Me: *sulks* I guess so**

**Drake: It's your turn, Erik**

**Erik: *sighs* I figured. R & R people. We've got enough on our hands with her already. Please don't make her go into the emo corner**


	8. Chapter 7: Secrets of the Soviet House

**Hey! Nony here being nice and updating. If you would like, you can skip the usual banter I have with my character, but right after the disclaimer is a quick note about this chapter that may make a difference as to whether you understand it or not. No, chapter 11 hasn't been complete. I started RPing and keep forgetting about continuing it. Fail!Nony fails...**

**Erik: *pinches me* Nony!**

**Me: Ow! Erik Matteus Kors!**

**Erik: You're welcome for saving you from the emo corner**

**Røsslyng: Storbror, are you sure that was necessary? You pinch hard**

**Erik: Ja. It was. You missed the emo corner**

**Drake: It was mind scarring.**

**Matteuksen: *Nods***

**Me: *Ignoring all of them* Hey guys, who should you the disclaimer for this chapter?**

**All: *read the chapter quickly* Prussia**

**Prussia: *Appears awesomely in a poof of smoke & takes out a script he wrote & one given to him by Erik (yeah, I fear how this turns out)* Hetalia does not belong to AnonymousSanSama, a.k.a. Nony because she is not as awesome as the awesome me! Kesesese! If she did, the Asians would own a restaurant**

**Note on the Chapter: This chapter contains many flashbacks of the characters who lived in the Soviet House during their childhood. It's still primarily in first person POV. This chapter was actually supposed to be like Chapter 4, but I changed my mind last minute. All of the memories are in italics to differentiate them from the rest of Lukas's narration. And prepare to meet my OC for Moldova, Vladimir Diacov, Nicolae's little brother**

I rapidly fill Vash in over a quick cup of black coffee. Well, mine's black since Vash filled his with sugar and milk. He sighs at the new details as we head out in our respective cars. Erika was told to stay in the house with Emil, so they call their friend, Mark Jones (Matthew's younger brother) to spend the day with them. Well, at least until they have to be in school.

Soviet Street is quite close to my home on Nordic Drive, so Vash and I reach the apartment house in almost no time flat. There's crime tape around the building with many people, including the other residents, crowding around it. I catch frantic shouts, primarily from Elizabeta, who has one of the loudest voices.

"Eliza!" Vash calls as we run over to the scene.

The brown-haired Hungarian's green eyes light up at the sight of me and Vash. "Vash! Lukas!"

I duck under the crime scene tape closely folowed by the Swiss man.

"Is Nicolae okay?" I ask, fearing for the life of my friend.

"An ambulance is on the way," Elizabeta sighs. "I didn't come to long ago, but when I did, Eduard was already dead on the floor. Tino wants you to see if there are any clues in the apartment."

"Got it," I respond, heading inside.

I hurry to the floor that the apartment is located. I reach the apartment, only to find the door open and half off the hinges. Entering slowly, I absorb how terrible the place looks. It's been thoroughly ransacked as though someone had been searching for something of utmost importance. My stomach constricts when I spot Eduard on the floor. His green eyes are wide, cloudy, and permanently unseeing. His mouth is open, twisted in a look of surprise.

I quickly turn away. _I'm sorry I failed you, Eduard. I tried. I truly did. _

"Tino?" I call.

"Lukas? Oletko se sinä?*" is the high reply I receive.

"Ja,**" I respond. "Where are you?"

A hand waves from one of the rooms. I run over to the room. Inside, I find Tino on the floor of what looks like a bedroom, pressing a cloth over an injury on Nicolae's forehead. The Romanian's right leg is twisted in an unnatural angle and his eyes are shut.

"Hva skjedde?***" I inquire a little too sharply as the Finnish man winces a bit. "Sorry."

"It's okay," Tino reassures with a small smile. His grin falls as he continues. "I went out for a few minutes to pick up a couple of things. Nicolae insisted he'd be fine." Tino's voice cracks. The cloth in his hands slips, revealing a bleeding wound on Nicolae's head. "When I came back Eduard was dead and Nicolae was in here, like this. I checked the rest of the apartment for Raivis, but couldn't find him." The Finn bursts into tears. "I failed my own friend. I told Eduard I'd make sure he'd be alright, but in the end, I couldn't stop him from dying."

I place one hand on Tino's shoulder, comfortingly, while using the other to place pressure on Nicolae's injury.

"He's in here."

Elizabeta enters the room followed by medics with a stretcher. One of the medics, a girl with blond hair tied into pigtails named Alice, according to her ID, quickly inspects the damage done to Nicolae.

"Maddie, come help me lift him onto the stretcher," she says in a thick British accent.

Her assistant, also a blond girl with pigtails named Madeline, apparently, helps her place Nicolae on the stretcher and Madeline wheels him out.

After answering Alice's questions on how Nicolae was wounded, we leave her with our cell phone numbers so we can be notified of the Romanian's condition. She exits the apartment. By this time, I'm inspecting the rest of the apartment when Mathias and Berwald arrive. Berwald tries to comfort Tino while Mathias helps me investigate.

"Antonio is helping with the interrogation of Anya Braginskaya and Natalys Arlovskaya," Mathias informs me.

"Who else is helping with the interrogation?" I question. "No one would let Antonio go at it alone."

My phone rings. Checking the screen, I notice the call is from Arthur.

"Hello?" I answer.

"Hello Lukas," Arthur says. "I would like you to come to assist Antonio. I little 'good cop, bad cop' if you will." So that answers my question.

"Understood," I say. "I'm on the way."

I leave the building and enter my car. I drive to the station where Gilbert waits outside, appearing very tense.

"Are you okay, Gilbert?" I ask exiting my car.

"It's that woman," the albino sighs. "They just don't bring back any good memories."

_"Gilbert!" Natalya cried, spotting the mud covered German teenager. "Clean yourself up right now!"_

_"Kesesese," Gilbert laughed. "You're not my mom! You're not even older than me!"_

_The teenage Belarusian girl whipped out a knife, wielding it menacingly. "Go clean yourself up. My big sisters don't like mud on the carpets."_

_"Irre****," Gilbert muttered under his breath_

_._

_"What was that?" _

_Natalya pounced._

Gilbert leads me to a room I haven't been to very often-the interrogation room. I enter the dull, gray room that contains a one way mirror, a metal table, and three chairs. Seated on one chair is a scowling platinum haired woman with dark blue eyes. Natalya Arlovskaya. Antonio sits on the other side of the table, his permanent smile plastered on his face. Spread on the table are pictures. I recognize the faces on every single one. Gilbert Beilscmidt. Elizabeta Héderváry. Nicolae Iliescu. Vladimir Diacov. Feliks Łukasiewicz. Toris Laurinaitis. Eduard von Bock. Raivis Galante.

"Who are you?" Natalya snaps.

"We're the ones asking the questions, Ms. Arlovskaya," Antonio says in a sickly sweet voice, noticing my presence. "Excuse us for a moment." He rises from his seat to talk to me privately outside the room.

"So they sent you to be my bad cop?" he asks.

I nod. "I also can pick up the slightest change in any facial expression that you will likely miss. I'm more like your silent partner than the bad cop. How has it been so far?"

"So far she won't say a word." Antonio sighs. "She's ignoring all my questions. She didn't even react when I took out the pictures." He quickly adds, "Don't worry, I got permission from the others to use them."

_"Nicolae!" Vladimir called to his older brother, tears streaming down his face._

_The Romanian averted his striking red eyes from his book to look at the little crying child._

_"What happened?" Nicolae asked, pulling his brother onto his bed._

_"Natalya hit me!" Vladimir wailed._

_"Why did she do that?" Nicolae began to soothingly stroke his brother's dark hair. "Did you do something you weren't supposed to?"_

_"N-no."_

_"Then why would she hit you?"_

_"She doesn't like me!"_

_Nicolae nearly laughed. The Belarusian girl didn't like anyone. She knew that she could do whatever she wanted and get away with it. She was the youngest daughter of the owners of the orphanage. Her oldest sister, Yekaterina, was next in line to run the home with her sisters, Anya and Natalya, once they reached the age._

_"She doesn't like anyone," Nicolae whispered with a smile, gaining a giggle from Vladimir. "Don't let her bullying bother you. When she does bother you, just think to yourself, 'Ea este o vrajitoare***** and she's not worth a fight.' It's helped me control myself."_

_The next night, Nicolae entered the bedroom, his face covered in bruises and a long, bloody gash on his arm, matching one his little brother received earlier that day, but longer and deeper._

"Do we have Anya or Katyusha?" I ask.

Antonio shakes his head. "No. When we came, Katyusha wasn't around and Anya couldn't leave the children unattended."

"Did either know beforehand that we'd be coming?"

"No."

_How do we approach someone like her? _I muse to myself. An idea, probably extremely idiotic, comes to mind. I quickly explain my plan to Antonio. I hope if we bring in a former member of the home, we can get some sort of reaction from the woman. Unfortunately, with Elizabeta still at the crime scene, Nicolae in the hospital, and Gilbert uterly terrified of Natalya, the only one left is Nicolae's little brother, Vladimir Diacov.

Guilt fills my heart as I call Vladimir. As the protective brother I try to be, I made it a priority to obtain the phone numbers of Emil's closest friends-Vladimir and Erika, just in case anything happened to Emil, but it works out that their oldr brothers are my friends, so I could be in contact with either of them if anything happened to Nicolae or Vash. Dang it, Vladimir doesn't know about Nicolae yet unless Elizabeta called him.

"Buna ziua?******" Vladimir's voice rings out once he answers.

"Vladimir? It's Lukas," I say.

"Oh! Hi Lukas. How are you?"

"I'm fine, thank you," I respond. "I must tell you something abo-"

"It's about my frate mai mare******* isn't it?" he interjects sadly. "I heard about it. Elizabeta called to tell me. I was about to see if he's okay when you called."

"My apologies, but I have to ask you for a favor." I quickly explain what I have in mind. Vladimir readily agrees. I make sure to promise him that I'd take him to see Nicolae, which reminds me...

I call Tino to ask him if he heard anything from the hospital about Nicolae. Turns out that his condition isn't as bad as we thought. His leg is broken, but, fortunately, he doesn't have a concussion or any permanent damage. All he needed was stitches to close the injury on his forehead. Thank goodness it wasn't anything serious and he'll be fine.

"Is he coming?" Antonio asks after I get off the phone with Tino.

"Vladimir? Yes, he agreed," I reply.

The dark-haired Moldovan arrives a few minutes later. His red eyes flash in anticipation. He's so much like his brother. Not just the red eyes, but personality-wise, Nicolae Iliescu and Vladimir Diacov are exactly alike.

_Elizabeta sat by the window, hoping that he'd come by again. Even if she could just catch a glimpse of him, she'd be satisfied. She just wanted to see his dark hair, and if she was lucky, his beautiful violet eyes. _

_"Kesese," came a voice from behind her._

_Elizabeta whirled around, her fist connecting with the pale face of the albino German teenager._

_"Ow! What the heck, Elizabeta?! That was so unawesome!" he cried. "Looking out for that prissy musician?"_

_Elizabeta felt her face flush. So Gilbert of all people knew of her forbidden crush._

_"Don't tell anyone!" she quickly pleaded. She didn't need Anya or Natalya catching wind that she had a crush on the foreign boy._

_"Fine, fine, fine," Gilbert agreed. "But what's in it for the awesome me?"_

_"I don't tell Yekaterina, Anya, or Natalya about you sneaking out after hours."_

_"How do you know about that?" Shock was evident in Gilbert's tone._

_"I saw you leaving."_

_Gilbert's face drops. "I just wanted to get to a phone booth so I could talk to my little brother."_

_After a few more minutes of idle chit-chat, Gilbert made his way back to the boys bedroom for the night. Or so he wanted Anya and Natalya to think. He just wanted to pretend he was asleep until the Braginski family went to bed, so he could sneak out again to talk to Ludwig. The brothers missed each other and their parents were working hard to get their eldest son back._

_This time, Gilbert's luck ran out._

_He ran into Anya._

"Do you know this child?" Antonio asks Natalya once we're back in the interrogation room.

She's silent.

I glance at Vladimir. I can see the anger rising in his face. He turns to me. At my nod, he steps up closer the table and rolls up his sleeve, revealing a pale pink scar on his upper arm, nearly identical to one that Nicolae has.

"Do you remember _this_, Natalya?" he spits out venomously. "You stabbed me and my brother because Nicolae comforted me!"

Natalya remains silent. This is much harder than I originally perceived. After a few more minutes of hopeless attempts at getting the woman to speak, Antonio and I do something that we have never done before: give up. The two of us aren't known to give up. Especially me. Mathias always says that I'm the most stubborn person he's ever met. Unfortunately, Natalya Arlovskaya seems to be a nut that is just too hard to crack.

I thank Vladimir for his help by keeping my end of the deal by taking him to visit Nicolae. We reach the hospital. After inquiring about what room Nicolae is in, we head up to see him. We enter the room with the sign that reads "Iliescu, Nicolae." Inside, the strawberry blonde haied man is propped upright on pillows, a bandage around his head. Pillows elevate his right leg, which is in a cast. Nicolae is awake and seems to be as alert as he always is.

"Vladimir, Lukas," he greets us with a smile. "Thank you for coming."

"How are you feeling, frate?********" Vladimir asks.

"Better," Nicolae replies with a smile.

"Vladimir, do you mind if I speak to Nicolae in private?" I request.

The Moldovan teen nods, leaving the room and closing it behind him. The ambiance of the room becomes tense.

"What's bothering you, Lukas?" Nicolae inquires.

"What happened?" I finally manage to question.

"I had a feeling you would ask me about that." The Romanian sighs.

"I do care about your well-being, Nicolae, as you are one of my closest friends." I clarify. "But I want to bring this case to a close as mch as you do. Not only will we capture whoever murdered Toris, Feliks, and Eduard; but the person who injured you like this."

"Eduard's dead?" Seems like Nicolae may have been attacked prior to Eduard's death.

I nod slowly. Nicolae lowers his eyes.

"...I failed," Nicolae whispers. "There was so much on my shoulders. But I failed."

"So did I. My failure is worse than yours. I promised a fifteen-year-old boy who had a horrible life that he and Eduard would be alright."

"Yekaterina Braginskaya," Nicolae says after a moment of silence.

"What?"

Nicolae's red eyes lock with my deep indigo ones. "The one who attacked me was Yekaterina Braginskaya. More commonly known as Katyusha."

* * *

*Lukas? Is that you? (Finnish)

**Yes (Norwegian) (No Google Translate used!)

***What happened? (Norwegian)

****Freak (German)

*****She's a witch (Romanian)

******Hello? (Romanian)

*******Older brother (Romanian)

********Brother (Romanian)

* * *

**Erik: ...Wow, that was intense...**

**Me: That was the point**

**Drake: R & R or else Erik, Matteuksen, and I will hunt you down**

**Me: Drake!**

**Erik: What he means is: R & R to keep Nony out of the emo corner**

**Me: By the way, a shout out to all my wonderful reviewers! You guys rock!**


	9. Chapter 8: The Chase is On

**Guess who finally finished chapter 11?**

**Erik: Guess who's been watching too much Austin & Ally?**

**Me: At least when nothing good is on**

**Drake: Still crazy**

**Me: Shut it, Drake! *flips pony over shoulder* alrighty then my wonderful readers, here is chapter eight. I happily introduce one of my favorite characters, plus there's a bit of a surprise at the end~**

**Matteuksen: Don't give away everything! We need the suspence & cliffhangers to keep readers interested**

**Erik: Disclaimer? *At my nod, he yells* Danmark!**

**Denmark: Ja? *reads the paper that Erik shoves into his hands (Me: Oh no)* Hetalia does not belong to Nony, for if it did, she would rule the world & it's in enough chaos already**

**Me: ERIK!**

**Erik: Farvel dear readers, check out the end to see if I survive this~ *runs off***

I call Arthur after dropping Vladimir off at his home, top inform the British supervisor of the newest developments, thanks to Nicolae.

"Good job," Arthur compliments. "We just need to figure out where Ms. Braginskaya is." There he ends the call.

Something gnaws at the back of my mind. Katyusha never struck me as the type who would kill. I don't know her very well, but she's always been polite, unlike her younger sisters. More importantly, _why_ would she kill three innocent teenage boys. If Eduard had survived he would have met Emil and possibly make a friend. The very realization of Eduard's death being a reality and the mere possibility that Raivis may die if we don't apprehend Katyusha fast enough makes my head ache. _Positives,_ I strictly remind myself. Truth be told, I am not a optimist, but a realist. Mathias keeps bothering me to try to become an optomist. If he knew exactly what my life is like, he'd understand why I'm a realist as opposed to an optimist or a pessimist.

I head back to the station to ask Antonio if he dug up anything at all. Well, after making a quick pit stop at a coffee shop. What? I like my coffee.

"Lukas! Where've you been all morning?" comes world's most annoying voice. Or at least one of them.

"Mathias," I sigh. "Do have any idea what's been going on today?"

"Yeah," the obnoxious Dane replies, a hint of sadness in his voice. "Did you see Nicolae?"

I nod. "He's well. He'll be out either later today or tomorrow morning."

"That's good." Mathias grins like the idiot he is.

"Lukas!" comes a sharp voice from behind me. I turn to see Arthur, his thick eyebrows (seriously, those things look like caterpillars) raised in concern.

"Yes, Arthur?" I question carefully.

"How's Nicolae? I forgot to ask you when I spoke to you earlie-" He notices the cup in my hand. "Is that coffee?" At my slow nod, he adds, disgusted, "I don't understand how you can drink that utter cr-"

"Arthur!" I snap.

"What?"

"Get back to the point."

A confused look crosses Arthur's face for a moment. "What point? Oh, right, Nicolae."

My palm connects with my face. I thought that Arthur was the only other normal member of this dysfunctional team. Aside from Matthew, but not many people notice him. Even we forget about him sometimes.

"How is he?" Arthur snaps me out of my thoughts.

"Well," I reply. "His condition isn't as serious as we originally thought. He told me that he'd be out either tonight or tomorrow morning."

Arthur breathes out a sigh of relief. "That's wonderful news."

"Arthur, I have to meet with Antonio about his research," I excuse myself, walking away.

I reach the door to the computer lab. I hear Spanish music blaring from inside along with singing. Since I don't speak Spanish, (though I've picked up a few words here and there from Antonio,) I have no idea as to what Antonio is singing about. My knuckles rap sharply against the heavy door. The singing stops as the door opens, revealing a smiling (surprise, surprise) Antonio.

"Hey, Lukas!" he greets. "Come in. What can I do for you?"

I enter the lab.

"Do you have anything for me?" I inquire.

The smile grows. "Yes, I do." I notice his computer's screen saver of dancing tomatoes and churros as he moves the computer mouse to return to the home screen. There are several articles opened up, completely obscuring his wallpaper of (you'll never guess) tomatoes.

"What are those?"

"Stuff I found about the different families our little Raivis has lived with, including the Soviet House. After that, the trail runs cold as he'd been living with Toris and Eduard, completely under the radar. It's really not all that much. Every single family basically disappeared. Looks like they didn't want anything to be known about them."

I nod as Antonio starts explaining the boy's life story. It's not much since most of his history prior to the Soviet House is completely unknown. All that Antonio really managed to dig up is that Raivis was supposedly born in Riga, Latvia. He'd also lived with seven families. All of them had given him up as he had brought them "bad luck." The details of this bad luck is unknown as the families never spoke of it. It would be useless to try to even contact them since they all lived in Latvia and had probably moved since they sheltered Raivis. Antonio admits that he'd tried to look into the so called "bad luck," but nothing came up. Unfortunately, he doesn't speak Latvian, nor does he have a program to translate any of the articles in that language, much to my own astonishment.

"Takk*," I say preparing to exit the room.

"Sorry I couldn't find much," Antonio apologizes.

"You tried your best." With that said, I leave.

I make my way down the halls with my swift strides that could rival both Mathias and Berwald, despite the ridiculous height difference between me and them. Seriously, those brutes tower over me. I find myself in the sci-fi-esque lab of the one and only Gilbert Beilschmidt, toxicology specialist extraordinaire. Or at least that's how he puts it. I just find him quite annoying and am waiting for the day Elizabeta makes good on her promise to whack him with her skillet. She threatens Francis and Gilbert all the time and she does indeed have a skillet sitting in her office. I've seen that thing and trust me, based on the look of it at least, you do not want to get struck by it.

Gilbert bends over a table full of weird chemicals and equipment. Eduard had shown no physical wounds from what I'd seen at the scene (pun not intended). From the look on his face and lack of surface wounds, my initial thought was poisoning- Gilbert's forte.

"How are you feeling, Gilbert?" I question, leaning against the door fame of the lab.

The albino's head snaps up. Realizing what I'm referring to, his face falls.

"I hate her," he mumbles. He throws in some German that doesn't sound very complimentary.

"I know you do," I remark. "Did you know it was Katyusha who murdered Eduard and nearly killed Nicolae?" I inquire after a few moments of silence.

"Yekaterina?"

I nod. "I spoke to Nicolae. He said that she was the one who attacked him."

"How does he know it wasn't Anya or Natalya?" Gilbert challenges, clearly in denial.

"At the time of murder, we'd already apprehended Natalya and Anya was still at the orphanage. I've met her. She wouldn't leave the children alone and we all know that the Soviet House is falling apart due to recent cuts, so there's no staff other than Katyusha, Anya, and Natalya."

"Sie war die einzige, der mich liebte**," Gilbert mutters.

"Excuse me?"

"She was the only one who was nice to me." He resumes his experiments.

Silence hangs over us. I make my way over to the large metal table Gilbert's working on.

"Did you figure out Eduard's cause of death?"

"Fayghen.^"

My eyes widen. "How'd she get her hands on that?"

Gilbert shakes his head. "Beats me. If anything, it would have to be off the black market."

"I thought we shut down that racket two years ago," I muse, thinking about the packets and vials of the fast acting toxin we have under strict lock and key along with a lot of security.

I feel the dull pounding in my head again. Lack of sleep and this crazy case may actually be threatening my mental health. I need to ask Ivan if I could take some time off after this case ends. I think we all need it.

"Are you okay, Lukas?" Gilbert asks.

I realize that my head in in my hands. "I'm alright," I say, removing my hands from my head.

"If you say so." He scrutinizes me a little longer. "You look tired."

He hit the nail on the head with how I currently feel.

We chat a little bit longer, before I bid him goodbye. This case is really getting out of hand at this point. I can't make heads or tails over who is the perp and who isn't. Katyusha was the last person I'd have thought would commit such a terrible crime. My suspicions were on either Anya or Natalya. Maybe one of them assisted her? Why specifically Toris, Feliks, and Eduard? Was it because they helped Raivis escape? It seemed juvenile to kill a few teenagers because of one boy. Could Raivis really have a brand of luck that caused him to get thrown around by so many people? My head aches a bit. This is where I admit I'm thinking too hard and Mathias and Emil would say, "I told you so." That actually worsens my headache. Mathias being right mean the apocalypse is on the way.

I wander the halls of the crime lab, hoping to to find an aspirin. Without really noticing, I find myself on the floor. What did I hit into?

"Oww..." moans my unfortunate victim.

"Sorry," I apologize. Seeing the wavy blond hair with the weird curl hanging in front of his face, I slowly place the person to being Matthew Williams. How'd I miss him? Oh wait...

"It's alright," Matthew mumbles, his violet eyes sad. "It always happens." He chuckles a bit. "At least you're not that Cuban guy who always mistakes me for Alfred and beats me up for it." As twins, Alfred (a successful video game engineer with the help of his friend, Kiku Honda) and Matthew look nearly identical. The only differences, as Roderich has pointed out and is one of few people who have never mistaken Matthew for his elder brother, being their eye color and hair style.

Like just about everyone else here, Alfred and Matthew have a strange life story. They were separated at birth, Matthew taken to be raised in Canada by the Williams family while Alfred was to be raised in America with his birth parents, the Jones family. Eventually, they found out about each other and arranged to meet. Matthew decided to stay in Canada until he was old enough to move out. Now the brothers share an apartment and live with their brother, Mark.

"By the way, Matthew," I say. "You wouldn't happen to have any aspirin on you, would you?"

"As a matter of fact, I do," he replies in his extremely quiet voice. He reaches into the pocket of his lab coat and removes a small bottle of aspirin. He hands me two small pills.

"If you're not feeling well, you should go home," Matthew advises. "Ivan and Arthur would understand." He quietly (well, quieter than usual) adds under his breath, "I think."

"Thank you, I'll take that into consideration." We part our ways.

I head to the water cooler in the staff lounge (when we have nothing better to do we hang out in there) for a cup of water. I down the aspirin. My headache begins to subside a bit, much to my relief. I decide to go home for a bit of rest. Emil's in school, so I can avoid any petulant questions from my lillebror.***

I voice this request to Arthur, who agrees, offering to drive me home. I accept. Though my headache is getting better, I don't trust myself driving just yet. I entrust my car, which is currently parked in front, to Arthur.

He makes sure I make it into my house without collapsing, despite my arguments about my headache subsiding. Thick headed git. Wait, why am I using his dialect to insult him?

I head for my room to lay down for a quick nap. I don't bother changing for the second day in a row. I fall into a fitful sleep for a couple of hours. A loud crash wakes me. I throw my covers off and grab my gun from my bedside table. I exit my room, slowly making my way for the source of the noise. The kitchen. (Everything seems to be happening in my kitchen these days.)

I enter the large kitchen, where I see a swift movement from the side. All I really manage to pick up is pale blonde hair.

"I know you're in here," I warn to whoever's in my home. How'd they even get in? I made sure to lock my door when I came in.

"I'm sorry! Please don't shoot me!" cries a terrified female voice, thickly accented. For some reason, the accent makes me miss my old home. "I don't mean any harm."

"Come out," I order sharply, my hands shaking very slightly.

A girl, probably late teens, with pale blonde hair and dull blue eyes rises from the floor behind the island, her hands raised in the air.

"Who are you?" I demand, my gun still raised.

The girl gulps nervously before answering, "My name is Ida. I'm Greenlandic born and an orphaned teen living in the orphanage here on Nordic Drive. I'm searching for my brother, Anderson. He was taken to the Soviet House by accident. I saw you come out of a police cruiser and thought maybe you could help me."

Greenland? No wonder I began missing my home so much. Her accent reminded me of the old days in Norway that I struggle to recall.

I lower my gun a bit. "How'd you get in here?"

Ida blushes. "I...kinda picked the lock after that weird British man left."

I sigh. She reminds me of Mathias. "You know you can get into a lot of trouble for breaking and entering, right?"

"I know. Especially considering that I'm eighteen and all that jazz, but I really needed your help and I heard that you were planning on going to sleep."

"I hope you know that you're lucky you didn't wake me up while I was in bed, or I probably would have shot you."

"Sorry."

I sigh, completely lowering my gun. This girl is just a bumbling fool.

"I won't press any charges," I say. Her eyes light up. "As long as you never do it again."

"I promise I won't!" Ida quickly exclaims happily. "Will you join me to the Soviet House to find my brother?" I forgot about that.

"Yes," I agree, praying that she'd be quiet. "Just let me change." Without bothering to wait for an answer or realizing that I'm leaving a stranger who'd broken into my home alone, I head back to my room, where I change into simple casual clothes. I keep my gun in a holster hidden beneath my jacket on my pants, out of habit. I hurry back down, where Ida is staring at the pictures hanging on the walls. Namely, the ones of Emil and myself from when we were younger.

"Who's that?" she asks, pointing to a recent picture of Emil.

"My little brother," I reply.

The Greenlander scrutinizes the picture closer.

"He's cute," she finally says.

"Don't get any ideas."

"I won't." What did I just get myself into with this girl?

I practically drag her out of my house, heading towards the Soviet House. She starts chatting away about her little brother as we walk. All I really caught was that Anderson, her brother, is the same age as Emil and a bookworm. After that, I basically tune her out. She's a real chatterbox, and that's the last thing I need while recovering from a headache.

We're a block away from Soviet Street, when I stop dead in my tracks.

Natalya Arlovskaya exits a dilapidated house, crimson blood coating her hands.

* * *

*Thank you (Norwegian) (My knowledge FTW!)

**She was the only one who liked me (German)

^Just a little something I made up for an original story. This thing is a toxin that comes as either a white liquid or a pale green powder that dissolves quickly. It works fairly quickly by shutting down major organs first, so death is swift. Neither form of it has a taste, so the powder can be easily slipped into food or drinks. The liquid form is a little more difficult to slip into anything unless it's in anything that has foam, as once it hits anything, it turns into a foam like texture, retaining its white color. It's also extremely hard to come by, if you can tell from Lukas's reaction.

***Little brother (Norwegian) (I picked it up from fanfics)

* * *

**Mateuksen & Henrik: Dun dun duuuuuuun. Epic~ **

**Me: So, yeah, the only ones I actually own in this fic are Ida (my OC for Greenland) & her little brother (my OC for Faroe Islands)**

**Erik: I'm alive!**

**Me: For now. I do hold you life in my hands on a daily basis.**

**Erik: ehehehehe... R & R, so Nony doesn't go into the emo corner or kill me**


	10. Chapter 9: Race Against Time

**I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaaack~**

**Erik:*screams in terror* Just kidding**

**Me: He's been behaving. Yeah, so I don't really have much banter planned for this chapter, since it-**

**Henrik:*covers my mouth before I could spoil it* Geez, Nony, you're always telling us not to spoil the stories & here you are being a hypocrite**

**Me: *glares***

**Sig:*Sighs* Hetalia does not belong to Nony. If she did, *indicates the glaring contest between me and Henrik* it would basically look like that**

**Me: Sig!**

**Erik: Hlaupa, frændi, hlaupa! (Run, cousin, run!-Icelandic) (Yes, I know Erik is Norwegian (you would too if you read the end AN in a previous chapter), but he speaks exactly four languages, Icelandic & English being two of them)**

* * *

I pull Ida to the side. Before she can say anything, I put my finger to my lips to signal that she should keep her mouth shut. I pull out my phone, dialing a way too familiar number.

"Hallo?*"

"Vash, I think I found Raivis," I quickly explain what I'd seen, leaving out Ida. Vash doesn't have to know that an eighteen-year-old girl managed to break into my fortress of a home.

"I'll be there with Elizabeta, Tino, and Berwald." He ends the call.

The sound of a door closing pierces my ears. I glance over my shoulder to see that Natalya had re-entered the house. I turn back to Ida. Her eyes scream terror.

"What's happening?" she asks nervously.

"An investigation," I explain. "You may not want to be near here at the moment."

This prompts her to run towards Soviet Street. She really cares about her brother if she's still going to the Soviet House.

I stalk silently towards the house that Natalya went into. I peer between the cracks of a boarded up window to see Natalya conversing with Katyusha, the latter standing over a small form curled in the fetal position. Raivis.

I hear the sounds of sirens, knowing that my collegues have arrived. The first one I see is Vash. The blonde Swiss man jogs over to me.

"Are they in there?" he asks.

I nod, scooting over so he could look inside. He squints through the crack. A displeased look crosses his face.

"That's them all right," he finally says.

_Tell me something I don't know_, I think bitterly.

Vash whirls around to face Elizabeta, Tino, Berwald, and...Mathias? Why is he here?

"Hey, Lukas," the boisterous Dane greets me. He answers my unasked question. "I came to make sure you were alright. Arthur said that you had a headache earlier."

I sigh. There's no way of Mathias not shoving his nose into my buisness.

"I'm fine, Mathias," I snap.

"If you two are finished, Elizabeta, Tino, Berwald, and I are heading in," Vash remarks, clearing his throat.

"I'm coming in with you," I declare to eveyone's surprise. They didn't expect me to offer so quickly. Or at all, for that matter, since it's not my job. "Raivis will only trust me." To be honest, I don't know how much he really trusts me anyomore, considering Eduard's death.

Tino nods in agreement. He's seen the Latvian's reactions to me. He persuades the others to let me come in.

"You can come," Vash sighs, finally giving in to Tino's infamous puppy eyes. Everyone gives in to those large violet eyes. "Just stay behind us."

Everyone, save for Mathias, who we forced to stay outside, pulls out their guns. Once ready, Elizabeta knocks sharply on the door, announcing, "Open up! It's the police." More like four cops and a member of the crime lab. No answer. Elizabeta knocks again, harder. Still nothing. "If you don't open the door and come out peacefully, we'll use force!" Nothing.

Elizabeta glances at Vash, who nods to signal that we should go in. Elizabeta steps away to make room for Berwald. The large Swede kicks the door in with his heavy boots. The door falls off its rusty hinges. Berwald, closely followed by Elizabeta, Vash, Tino, and myself, rush into the house. We find Katyusha and Natalya near the back with a sobbing, bloodied Raivis on the floor.

"Freeze!" Elizabeta yells.

Katyusha whirls around, shocked to see the five of us with raised guns.

"I'm sorry!" the silver haired Ukrainian cries, much to our own surprise. "I only wanted to end their pain." Tears stream down her face. "They'd all had such miserable lives that weren't improving. I didn't want them to suffer anymore."

"That's no reason to kill anyone," Vash snaps.

"I was trying to help."

"But you murdered three teenagers who still had a chance to make a difference in the world," Tino says, attempting to take control. "They all had friends who were devastated to learn of their deaths." I know that he's including himself as a friend. He did know Eduard. I won't forget the look on his face at the apartment that Toris, Eduard, and Raivis had lived in after Eduard's death.

"You don't know anything," Natalya hisses. I'd almost forgotten that she was there. She points an accusing finger at a semi-concious Raivis, glaring at us. "It was all his fault. He brought this upon them as he did his former families. He brings nothing but bad happenings. I told Anya and Katyusha to get rid of him the day bad things began happening to us."

"What do you know about the boy?" I question, stepping forward a bit.

"None of your buisness, paŭzun.**"

"Piedod. Tas viss ir mana vaina***," Raivis croaks. "I brought this on everyone. Toris, Feliks, Eduard." He takes a shuddering breath. "They're dead. And it's because of me."

_Raivis_. My heart sinks hearing his voice so weak.

Natalya moves towards Raivis. Vash lets off a warning shot. "Don't move or the next one is through your head."

Natalya, swift as a cheetah, grabs her own gun, pointing it at Raivis. I can't believe this is coming down to a standoff.

"Get out or the boy dies," she snarls.

"You plan on killing him anyways," I remark. "Why?"

Katyusha, still crying, answers, "His first family sold him to a Russian mafia to ensure their safety. They then abandoned him to the mafia, but someone else found and took him in. The mafia is trying to track him down. If he's dead, the other families can stop living in fear." What?

"That's no excuse for muder," Elizabeta says, vemon lacing her words.

"Shut up!" Natalya snaps.

Katyusha slowly trudges over to Elizabeta, tears still streaming down her face. She holds her hands out, much to our surprise, in surrender.

"I was wrong. I shouldn't have killed Toris or Eduard. I only listened to my sisters," she sobs. "I'll atone for what I did."

"You didn't kill Feliks?" Vash inquires.

Katyusha shakes her head.

"Who did it then?" Tino asks.

"It was Natalya, wasn't it?" I pipe up.

Natalya growls in response to Katyusha's near inaudible "yes."

Elizabeta reachers for her side, removing her handcuffs. "Yekaterina Braginskaya, you are under arrest for the murders of Toris Laurinaitis, and Eduard von Bock as well as the attempted murders of Nicolae Illiescu and Raivis Galante." She pulls Katyusha's hands behind her back, slapping the metal cuffs around them.

Out of fury for her sister's betrayl and the fact that they were caught, Natalya redirects her aim and begins shooting. Vash, Elizabeta, Tino, Berwald, and I manage to duck for cover in time. Katyusha hides behind the stairs. We fire back in retaliation. Unfortunately, we have to be careful as to not catch Raivis in the enraged Belarusian continues firing in any direction she spots us.

Vash cries out.

I avert my gaze from the crazed blonde to check on Vash, who's on the other side of the room. A line on blood oozes down his arm, soaking through his uniform. The look he shoots me says that it's not as bad as it looks. A graze wound. I accept his word, turning my focus back onto Natalya. To my, and robably the rest of the team's, horror, Natalya decides to continue her original plan to shoot Raivis.

"Elizabeta! Berwald!" I call. "Back me up!"

"You better not be doing what I think you're doing," Vash warns between gritted teeth.

"D'n't d' 't," Berwald says.

On pure impulse and adrenaline, I rise from the floor behind an overturned table to hurry to Raivis's side. Vash and Tino cry out for me to stop. Berwald and Elizabeta get up to back me up.

_I can't let him die. I broke one too many promises already._

A single shot rings out.

"Lukas!"

* * *

*Hello (German)

**Creep (Belarusian)

***I'm sorry. It's all my fault (Latvian)

* * *

**And that, my dear readers, is my favorite cliffhanger of this fic.**

**Erik: *shudders* R & R**


	11. Chapter 10: Waiting

***Sings* I'm alive! I'm alive! (Kuroshitsuji FTW!)**

**Erik: Nony!**

**Me: Oh, right, sorry. Great news people! Chapter 12 is complete! It has been deemed good by my beta who is awesome as Prussia. I apologize yet again for leaving you all hanging for so long. So without further ado, chapter 10!**

**Henrik: Nony. You're forgetting something important**

**Me: What?**

**Henrik: The disclaimer**

**Me: Nyeh. Russia! Can you do the disclaimer?**

**Russia: Hetalia does not belong to this glupaya devochka (silly girl). If it did, *evil smile* all would have become one with Russia lng ago, da?**

**Me: *smiles as evily as Russia* Da~**

* * *

"Lukas!"

Mathias felt as though his heart had dropped when he heard the shooting begin, but now that he hears Elizabeta's cry, he thinks his heart will stop. The sound of another gunshot snaps Mathias out of his trance. Not caring what he'd been told-to stay outside-he rushes into the house, gun at the ready. The scene that "greets" him shocks him.

Vash, who has a piece of cloth tied around his upper arm, cuffs Natalya Arlovskaya's hands behind her back. A small crowd consisting of Elizabeta, Berwald, and a crying Tino crouches around a still figure on the floor.

Mathias rushes over, pushing Berwald, who's trying to comfort Tino, and Tino out-of-the-way. His heart constricts. Lukas lies on the floor, blood pouring out of the bullet wound on his chest. his face is paler than usual and his indigo eyes seem duller. His breathing is ragged and uneven.

"Lukas!" Tears sting Mathias's eyes. He gets down to his knees. "Lukas."

The Norwegian peers up at him. "M-Mathias," he wheezes. "T-the Sov-viet House. Find I-da. Tell her that I'm sorry."

_Who?_ Mathias wonders. To Lukas, he says, "Don't talk. Save your strength."

Ignoring Mathias, Lukas continues, "I-if I don't make it, tell Emil that I'm s-s-orry that I couldn't keep my p-promise."

"Don't say such things. You'll be alright."

Lukas's eyes flutter shut.

_No, no, no!_ Mathias thinks, panicked.

Elizabeta's voice can be heard crying desperately into her radio, "I need two ambulances right now!" She gives the address of where the team is. She turns to the others. "Tino, will you take Katyusha while I take Natalya? I don't want them being together."

Tino nods, shakily rising to his feet.

"Keep me updated," he says to Mathias and Berwald before leading a sobbing Katyusha out of the house followed by Elizabeta and Natalya.

Mathias cradles Lukas's head in his lap, willing his best friend to fight to stay alive. Vash hurries over to Raivis, who finally lost consciousness.

"H'w 's h'?" Berwald asks.

"He still has a pulse, though it's pretty weak," Vash explains. "I'm not going to move him, just in case I aggravate any major injuries."

The sounds of sirens signal the arrival of the much awaited for ambulances. There's a whirl of activity as the medics whisk Lukas and Raivis away. Mathias begs to be able to ride with Lukas. After a bit of bickering, the poor medics finally agreed, claiming that they couldn't waste anymore time.

Before leaving, Mathias calls to Berwald and Vash, "Lukas said something about the Soviet House! You guys better head over there."

Berwald and Vash nod. Vash calls Arthur, filling him in on the what just occured. The Briton seems disturbed by Lukas's shooting.

"I hope he survives," Arthur voices.

"He's a fighter, so he should," Vash says. "I'll call back if I find out anything." He ends the call.

Arthur snaps his cell phone shut and sighs.

_How did this happen?_ he wonders, placing his head in his hands. _Am I really that terrible a leader?_

A knock on the door interrupts his thoughts.

"Come in," he calls.

A slightly haggard looking strawberry blonde hobbles in, supported by a pair of crutches and a bandage around his head.

"Buna ziua, Arthur," he greets, a small smile on his face.

"Nicolae!" Arthur gasps. "Welcome back. How are you feeling? Shouldn't you be resting?"

Nicolae chuckles. "Arthur, I'm out of the hospital for under an hour and you're already bombarding me with questions." He rethinks his last statement, laughing harder. "I guess that wasn't the greatest thing to say." He settles in a seat across from Arthur. "What happened since this morning? I can handle it."

Arthur sighs, knowing the Romanian won't give up. He fills Nicolae in the recent happenings, leaving out Natalya shooting Lukas. Like himself, Nicolae is also a close friend of Lukas and Arthur didn't want Nicolae to be in any more pain than he already was in.

Arthur flinches when Nicolae asks, "Do you know where Lukas is? I haven't been able to get through to him for a while."

The Englishman lowers his eyes sadly. "Lukas was shot when he, Vash, Tino, Elizabeta, and Berwald went in to arrest Natalya and Katyusha."

"Is he-"

"We don't know yet."

"Oh."

"Do you think Lukas is alright?" Tino asks as he & Elizabeta head back to their cars.

"Hard to say," Elizabeta sighs. "Let' s keep our minds off this by focusing on the job at hand. Berwald & Vash are supposed to be heading to the Soviet House."

Tino nods. "Let's go."

Meanwhile, Berwald's phone buzzes. He checks his latest text.

_Sorry, but can you go pick up Emil from school & bring him to the hospital? Lukas is in surgery & I don't want to leave since I don't know when he'll be out & I want to hear the details._

Berwald sighs, turning to Vash.

"I h've t' go," he says. "T'no 'nd El'zab't' sh'd b' 'n th' w'y h're."

"Alright. I'll wait for them near the Soviet House."

Berwald heads back to his car. The clock on his dashboard reads three thirty.

_Why does it feel so much later? _he wonders. The large Swede sighs. _It's been a long day for all of us. _As he drives towards the high school, his thoughts wander to Emil. _Poor Emil. Lukas is the only family he has left. _He recalls the numerous memories of the home he, Matthias, Lukas, Emil, and Bjorn lived in for a several years._ I wonder what Olav would say about us now._

He parks in front of the school gates just as many high schoolers begin filing out of the building. His cruiser earns a few stares and double takes. He ignores the gawking by texting Tino and Mathias for updates on the Soviet House and Lukas's condition. He receives no answers on either case. This greatly disturbs him.

A tapping on his passenger side window interrupts his thoughts. He gazes out to see an annoyed Emil. Berwald unlocks the door. Emil slides into the passenger side. All he says is, "You're causing a scene," before lapsing into an angry silence.

They ride in silence until Emil notices that Berwald is driving in the opposite direction of his and Lukas's home.

"Where are you taking me? Where's Lukas?" Emil begins bombarding Berwald with questions, his Icelandic accent heavier than usual.

"H'sp't'l," Berwald grunts in reply.

"What?" Emil cries, horrified at the new revelation. "W-what happened?"

Berwald doesn't answer. Instead, he parks near the emergency room and takes Emil in to meet up with Mathias. After asking around a bit, the pair find Mathias sitting outside an opertating room seeming very jittery and anxious.

"Mathias." Emil taps the large Dane on the shoulder.

Mathias looks up at the Icelandic teen and the large Swedish man. Tears spring into his eyes.

"Emil," he says. "I'm so sorry."

"What happened to him?" Emil snaps, tired of being in the dark.

"He was shot."

Emil glances at the operating room. Mathias follows his gaze.

"I've been here ever since he was brought in," Mathias explains. "I couldn't leave him." He lets out a choked sob. "He said that if he doesn't make it, I should tell you that he's sorry he couldn't keep his promise."

He feels a stinging pain on his face as Emil's hand connects with his cheek.

"Don't say that!" he snaps, his voice breaking slightly. Tears blur his vision "Lukas isn't dead."

"Emil," Mathias says softly. "He was shot in the chest. He may not make it."

Berwald gruffly grabs Mathias, dragging him out of earshot.

"Wh't th' h'ck d' you th'nk you're doin'?" he demands.

"Letting him know the truth," Mathias retorts defensively.

"We d'n't know 'f he's goin' t' die. D'n't go tellin' Em'l th't Luk's is dead."

Mathias stares at the floor. "Fine, fine. Just it's likely that he will die."

"Sh't 'p."

They return to where Emil has finally taken a seat, waiting anxiosly for news concerning Lukas. They sit in silence. The occasional buzz from Mathias or Berwald's phone is the only noise aside from the doctors, nurses, and patients. Both of them ignore the messages they receive. Or at least until Emil convinces them to at least check to see if Tino, Vash, or Elizabeta have texted them any new updates.

"Are you with Lukas Bondevik?"

The trio snap back to reality to see a doctor clad in scrubs walking towards them.

"Y-yeah," Emil stammers. "H-how is he?"

As the doctor speaks, Emil finds himself leaning closer to Mathias while tears stream down his cheeks.

* * *

**Erik, Matteuksen, & Henrik: Awwwwwwww**

**Drake: Way to go, leaving everyone hanging again**

**Me: That's ma job *smug smile***

**Drake: R & R. Please. Nony is hard enough to deal with when she's in one of her moods. Please don't add the emo corner**


	12. Chapter 11: Tragedy at the Soviet House

***Starts singing* I'm aliiiiive! I'm alive! Oh yeah!-**

**Erik: *covers my mouth with his hand* Nony, they're not here to listen to you sing.**

**Me: *Removes his hand* Are you implying that I have a bad voice?**

**Erik: No, but since you have that stupid cold, you sound nasal & weird**

**Me: Shut up! I can't help it that I'm hapy to finally have gotten the chapter done**

**Drake: Took you long enough. Considering your procrat-**

**Me: WRITER'S BLOCK! LACK OF INSPIRATION!**

**Erik: So that's what all the music, other fics, & new addiction to HomeStuck is called now?**

**Me: Shut it!**

**Matteuksen: *Sighs* Hetalia does not belong to AnonymousSanSama. She wishes, but knows it will never happen. By the way, there's a poll on her page regarding what to do after she completes this story. Check it out & vote!**

* * *

Tino and Elizabeta drive in their respective cars to the Soviet House, lights flashing and sirens blaring. In almost no time, they arrive at the large building. Vash sits outside, perched on the stairs leading up to the door, his head in his hands. Elizabeta and Tino hurry up to him.

"Is something wrong, Vash?" Elizabeta questions.

Vash lifts his head, looking haggard.

"What happened?" Tino asks, his violet eyes wide with curiousity.

"I've never seen such horrors," Vash mutters.

Elizabeta and Tino exchange worried glances. They wait for Vash to calm down before asking what happened.

"Inside," the distressed blonde replies.

"Let's go in," Elizabeta resolves.

Tino nods in agreement. They assist Vash to his feet. Taking out their guns, everyone prepares for the worst. The trio enters the Soviet House. Unfortunately, the worst is nothing like they expect.

A gasp escapes from Tino's mouth. Elizabeta covers her mouth in shock, tears stinging her eyes. Vash keeps his head down.

Splattered blood coats the walls. Bodies of the orphans who'd lived there litter the halls and rooms. There doesn't seem to be any survivors to this massacre.

"This...is horrible," Elizabeta says, breaking the long silence. "What kind of monster-"

"Anya," Vash interjects. "She was the only one left here."

"We don't know when this happened," Tino points out.

Vash opens his mouth to argue, when the trio hears a thump from a room. They pull out their guns. Lifting them up, Vash, Elizabeta, and Tino carefully make their way down the hall to the room the sound had originated from.

They reach one of the boys' room at the end of the hall. At Vash's nod, Elizabeta pushes the door open. More dead bodies greet them. They search the room, finding nothing but a closet with the door slightly ajar.

"Who's in there?" Elizabeta calls. "Whoever you are, come out!"

They receive no answer.

Vash, Tino, and Elizabeta make their way to the closet. Elizabeta calls for anyone inside to come out. No answer.

Elizabeta pulls the door completely open.

"Today is full of surprises, isn't it?" Elizabeta comments.

Inside the closet lays two unconcious teenagers. One male, one female. Both have pale skin, light blonde hair, and similar facial structures. Blood covers the male's shirt and the side of the female's face.

"They're still breathing!" Tino cries. "Vash, radio for help, Elizabeta, help me check out their wounds!"

Both comply. As Vash radios for the paramedics, Tino and Elizbeta carefully remove the two teens from the closet. They lay them down on an empty space on the floor, free of bodies and blood.

Just as they put the female down, her thick boot lashes out, striking Tino in his chest. Her dull blue eyes fly open.

"Stay away from my brother!" she yells, her voice strangely accented.

"Miss, please calm down," Elizabeta says soothingly. She holds out her badge. "We're only trying to help."

"You're not the Norwegian man."

This catches Tino and Elizabeta off guard.

"Miss-"

"Ida," the girl interjects, bushing her long hair behind her ear. "My name is Ida."

"This must be the girl Lukas was talking about," Tino whispers. "Excuse me, Ida, but you have blood on your face, where are you injured?" he asks her.

"It's not mine," Ida says somberly, tears stinging her eyes. "It's my brother's. It's Andersen's. That witch shot him." Tears begin flowing down her face.

"Where was he shot?" Tino asks.

"On his side. It wasn't a fatal hit, but he's losing blood."

"Who shot him?" Vash inquires.

"Anya Braginskaya," Ida replies bitterly. "She shot him right before I came. I started fighting with her, so she didn't get the chance to kill Andersn."

"Y-you fought with Anya?" Tino asks in a shrill voice, shocked.

Ida nods. "I grew up with a lot of boys, who taught me some tricks of the trade when it comes to fighting. I broke Anya's hand."

Three jaws drop.

Ida continues, "She ran away right after. I began putting pressure on the wound, but when I heard the door open, I caried him into the closet. And, here we are now."

The paramedics arive to take Andersen away to the hospital. Vash asks Ida to remain with him, Tino, and Elizabeta, but the medics have their own plan. They try to take Ida as well, until she convinces them that none of the blood on her face is hers. Then they give in, letting the crime stoppers have it their way.

"By the way, did any of you happen to see a blonde Norwegian man wearing a hairpin?" Ida asks out of the blue, while Vash, Tino, and Elizabeta search the room.

"How do you know Lukas?" Elizabeta asks, locking her green eyes with the Greenlander's dull blue.

"So that's his name. I ran into him earlier today," Ida lies smoothly. "He said he'd help me look for Anderson." Her face falls. "He never came. I know he works for the authorities. That's why I asked him for help."

Vash, Tino, and Elizabeta exchange glances. _Should we tell her?_

Tino nods slightly. He inhales deeply.

"Lukas was shot a little earlier today," he says slowly, allowing Ida to absorb the news.

"I-is he-" Ida stutters.

"We don't know."

"Oh." A thought strikes her. "Why are you guys telling me anything about Lukas at all? I find it odd that you're telling a complete stanger anything."

Tino smiles. "Lukas told us to look for you." His smile falters. "He told us to tell you that he's sorry."

At that moment, Tino's phone rings. He checks the name flashing on the screen. _Mathias Kohler. _He hurriedly accepts the call.

"Mathias!" Tino cries. "Mitä tapahtui? Kuinka hän voi? Onko hän kunnossa? Onko hän-?*"

Mathias chokes over his next words, evidently trying not to cry.

"He's alive."

* * *

* What happened? How is he? Is he okay? Is he-? (Finnish)

* * *

**Everyone: *Cheers* **

**Elsa: This is wonderful news~!**

**Me: I know. Sorry for keeping everyone in suspense for so long! & Ida has returned with yet another bang! I love writing her!**

**Drake: R & R. Nony knows she has more than four followers, so please leave her reviews so she knows who's still reading this**


	13. Chapter 12: Recovery

***Runs around screaming like Ritsu from Fruits Basket* SUMIMASEN GOMENASAI! **

**Erik: Shut up! Calm down!**

**Me: *Stops* Sorry-**

**Erik: Quit apologizing for everything!**

**Drake: He's just cranky because of a writing assignment Nony handed in about him**

**Me: You may wind up getting me a good mark~**

**Erik: *Turns away, annoyed & walks away***

**Me: Erik! Wait! *runs after him***

**Drake: *Facepalms* Idiot girl *Looks up* Well, Nony apologizes for the time it took to get this out, but school has been a pain in the neck for her & at home she's been distracting herself a little too much, so she did her writing in school. If she hadn't, this wouldn't be up yet**

**Me: *from over yonder* I HEARD THAT!**

**Drake: Nony does not own Hetalia, if she did, her hiatus would likely be longer than Himaruya's**

**Me: DRAKE! *Runs back in* Okay, warnings: Headcanons, drugged up Lukas, & stupid jokes. Okay, I'm also not a doctor, so I'm basing this off of stuff I've read. I have no idea how much if this is actually accurate. I feel bad for being so lazy, but that's what happened & please don't kill me for any inaccuracies**

* * *

**_Beep...Beep...Beep_**

One thing registers in my mind. Pain. Pain and an odd floaty feeling... Wait, what?

**_Beep...Beep...Beep_**

The steady sound nearly soothes me for some strange reason. The only soothing component in my black world.

**_Beep...Beep...Beep_**

Everything begins surging back. The case. The bodies. Raivis. Ida. The shooting. Oh, please don't tell me I'm dead.

I feel a slight pressure on my hand. Wait, if I can feel, then I must still be alive. Fighting with the raging urge to remain in my subconcious state, my eyes slowly open. Bright lights nearly blind me. The pressure on my hand increases. I lazily turn my head to the source of the pressure. My vision clears, revealing Emil squeezing my hand, tears in his violet eyes and tear tracks running down his pale face. I let out a light cough. Emil allows the waterworks to flow. Ah, I just made my lillebror cry.

"E-Emil" I strain to say hoarsely.

"Lukas," Emil says, his lower lip quivering. He tries to allow a small smile on his face. "Did you at least catch a bad guy?"

I shift my gaze to lock eyes with Mathias, who stands right next to my lillebror. Like Emil, his eyes are red like he'd been crying. A small smile finds its way across his face.

I squeeze Emil's hand. "Yeah. We did."

A soft chuckle followed by a choked sob escapes Emil's mouth.

**_Beep...Beep...Beep_**

What is that sound? I shift my gaze to the source of the sound. Also known as an EKG machine. Oh. Here's that strange moment when I finally take in my full surroundings. And finally realize that I'm in a hospital room. An IV is attached to my arm, dripping pain medications into my system. Okay, I'll admit that only Emil and Berwald have seen me heavily drugged. They will never speak a word of it.

Mathias leans out the door and calls to a doctor, "He's up."

A man with brown hair tied into a short pony walks in. He's clad in a white coat.

"Welcome back," he says in a thick Hungarian accent, smiling. "I'm Daniel Héderváry and I will be your doctor during your stay." He approaches my bed. "How are you feeling?"

"In pain," I reply with a light moan. In truth, my chest does hurt. What bothers me is something doesn't feel right.

"You really had everyone worried," Dr. Héderváry says. "Your heart stopped twice while you were in surgery." He sighs. "Unfortunately, you're not completely out of danger."

"What does that mean?" I ask, my voice barely above a whisper.

"Let's just say," Dr. Héderváry tells me, "if you get an infection while your body is in such a weakened state, you're as good as dead."

Oh.

"Excuse me, Doctor Héderváry," I say, the feeling, or non-feeling to be exact, really starting to bother me. "I can't feel my legs."

Cue collective gasp from Mathias and Emil. Tears spring into Emil's eyes once again.

"What do you mean that you 'cant feel your legs,' Lukas?" Mathias asks.

Dr. Héderváry sighs. "Exactly how it sounds."

"Why didn't you tell us?" Mathias cries alarmed.

The doctor scowls. "I was about to explain, but was rudely interrupted. Now if you'd let me explain." He clears his throat. "There is impact swelling compressing his spinal nerves, paralyzing his legs. Now," he adds, holding up a finger to indicate that he's not finished talking. "Before you all start freaking out, the swelling will go down and Lukas will regain the use of his legs." Cue collective sigh of relief. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need you two to leave so I can examine Lukas to make sure that he's suffering no ill effects as a result of the surgery. Plus, he needs his rest."

"Vi ses i morgen, kammerat,*" Mathias says with a smile, exiting the room.

"Bless, Lukas,**" Emil says before following Mathias out.

Dr. Héderváry smiles at me.

"How are you feeling, Lukas?" he asks. To my response of "in extreme pain," he says, "I figured. Your friend, Mr. Oxensteirna, requested that you weren't heavily drugged on painkillers. He said something about 'not wanting the Dane to see,' so I complied. You're still pretty drugged up, but not as much as you should be. Especially considering that you have a couple cracked ribs."

Only one thought flies through my mind: Shut up and give me my meds.

Dr. Héderváry adjusts the flow of painkillers so it can pump faster. Almost instantaneously, the pains in my chest cease and I begin feeling like I'm floating on a cloud...

I pass out from exhaustion.

I don't recall dreaming at all when I wake the next morning. Settled on a chair next to my bed is Tino.

"Good to see you're awake, Lukas," he says, a massive smile plastered on his face. "Did you sleep well?" A thoughtful look crosses his face. "Well, then again, it's probably hard sleeping with a hole in your chest, though the doctors did bandage it up and they probably stitched it up so you wouldn't keep bleeding from it, so I guess it's not much of a hole anymore than it is having threads in your skin, but that's if they stitched it up and it would probably feel really uncomfortable to feel the threads tugging at your skin whenever you moved, so that would suck, but at least it's better than having a hole in your chest, but if they didn't stitch it up, then I guess the pressure from the bandages would cause it to eventually stop bleeding, but stitching would probably be easier, but since you were in surgery to get the bullet removed, they probably made an incision over the wound to get to the bullet easier and I know that some sugeons don't stitch the incisions in case of infection, so then you would probably have bandages putting pressure on the wou-"

"What time is it?" I interrupt him drowily, my words a little slurred.

It takes Tino a moment to register what I'd just said before replying, "A little before twelve. Dr. Héderváry didn't want to wake you. I came right after he changed your bandages, so I guess you may not be totally stitched up-"

"Tino."

"I was rambling again wasn't I?" At my nod, he adds, "I'm sorry, it's just been stressful these past few days." He smiles. "At least we apprehended Natalya and Katyusha." His smile falters. "But Anya escaped."

"What was Anya's part?" I question.

"She murdered the children in the Soviet House."

A thought stikes me.

"There was a girl who I'd promised to help her find her brother-" I start.

"She and her brother are both safe," Tino says. Hehehe, his accent is funny.

Uh oh. Gah! Where are Berwald and Emil when you need to be bailed out? Well, considering the time, Emil should be in school and Berwald is probably at work...I can only be grateful that Mathias isn't here.

"Good morning!" comes the cheerful voice of Dr. Héderváry. He laughs. "Good afternoon is more like it."

To both my and Tino's shock, I laugh as well.

"How are you feeling today?" Dr. Héderváry asks me as he hooks up a new bag of painkillers.

The flow of the new medication brings me into a cloudy state of mind.

"Like I'm floating on a cloud," I reply dreamily with a giggle.

The look of shock on Tino's face only causes me to crack up even harder. The poor Finn only looks more confused at my erratic behavior. Pfft. Erratic. That's a funny word.

"I'm assuming by the look on your face that this isn't a normal occurance," Dr. Héderváry says.

Tino nods slowly.

"I've never seen him so...lively," he tries to explain. Darn right he's never seen me like this! I've never been shot in the chest or drugged up like this. Okay, so there was maybe one or two other times when I've been heavily drugged, but the only people who saw that were Berwald, Emil, and Olav, my and Emil's adoptive father.

Aside from a few more instances of random outbursts of laughter, the day is really a blur, and before I know it, the night has passed. As well as another day or two and it's already the weekend.

This morning, the drugs are still flowing through my body, not as much as when I first came in, since I'm starting to finally recover nicely, but still enough to cloud my mind quite a bit. This time, Emil sits at my bedside. Somehow, we wind up on the topic of my paralyzed legs.

"So if I don't regain use of my legs, then I'll be pretty usless to the team and I'll wind up having to retire. But if I do, I'll be juuuuuuuusssst fine~," I babble, not even paying attention to what I'm saying.

"There are no 'if,' 'ands,' or 'buts' about it!" Emil says. "You'll be just fine."

I snicker. "You said 'butts.'"

Emil shoots me an appalled look. "Are you high or something?" he asks.

"Yes," I reply. With that I burst into a fit of insane giggles.

Emil sighs. He mutters, "I can't believe I'm related to you." A little louder he says, "And you call yourself a mature adult," while shaking his head.

Still giggling like a loon, I turn my head towards Emil. I indicate for him to lean over so I can whisper in his ear, "Say it."

"Say what?" Emil asks, confused. Hehehe, silly boy.

"It."

"It?"

"You know what I mean," I egg Emil on.

His face flushes a deep red. Sorta like Gilbert's eyes. Or the tomatoes on Antonio's computer wallpaper.

"I'm not saying it," Emil murmers.

"Say it."

"No!"

"Say it."

"I'm not saying it!"

"Emil! Say it!"

Emil flushes an even deeper red. I believe that at this point Antonio would be laughing about how he looks like a tomato.

"S-stóri bróðir***," he mutters, looking away.

"That's more like it," I sigh, satisfied.

"You're so annoying!" Emil exclaims.

"Shhh," I say, lowering my voice. "It's not nice to yell in a hospital." With that, I fall into another fit of giggles.

Dr. Héderváry enters the room, shooing Emil out so he could run some tests and so I could get some rest. I have been feeling pretty tired lately. And achy. The next day, close to the afternoon, I figure out why. I've contracted a fever.

Dr. Héderváry forbids any visitors while I have the fever. So I'm stuck about two days with not a single visitor, left bored out of my mind. By the third day, though my fever hasn't completely broken-it's low grade-Dr. Héderváry allows me visitors again. Unfortunately, he's heavily drugged me again since I'd been having bad chest pains. He'd made sure it wasn't anything serious first.

Late afternoon, while back in my cloudy land with no worries, I find myself doing something I usually never do unless it's in the shower or softly while cooking: sing.

"Jeg er forelsket i et eventyr, selv om det gjør vondt  
Jeg bryr meg ikke om jeg mister vettet, for  
Jeg er allerede forhekset,****" I sing at the top of my lungs. I'm so lucky I have a good singing voice. And private room.

Someone enters my room. "Whoa, Lukas. You sing?" Mathias.

Not realy caring, I continue singing in my native language as a falsetto.

"Hver dag startet vi å krangle  
Hver kveld ble vi forelska  
Ingen andre kunne gjøre meg tristere  
Men ingen andre løfte meg høyt over****"

By this time, Berwald has joined Mathias in gaping wide-eyed at this rare occurance.

"Jeg vet ikke hva jeg gjorde  
Når vi plutselig falt fra hverandre  
I dag kan jeg ikke finne henne  
Men når jeg gjør, får vi en helt ny start****"

And I lauch into the chorus yet again.

Dr. Héderváry enters the room, saying something about the other nurses talking about the high Norwegian singer and wanting to see it for himself. And for himself, he saw.

Once I finish the song, my breath is heavy from the overuse of my voice. I haven't sung in quite a while, so my voice isn't used to such a strain.

Mathias and Dr. Héderváry clap enthusiastically from my performance.

"I didn't know you sing, Lukas," Mathias says. "We've lived in the same house for so many years, and I never knew you had such a good voice."

Dr. Héderváry finally lowers the flow of drugs so I can return to reality.

Finally registering the people in the room, my face-already slightly flushed from my low grade fever-burns in humiliation. Only Emil has ever heard me sing. The days back in Norway and Iceland when I would sing him lullabyes at night, before and a little after our parents' deaths, and after we moved out of the home we'd lived in with Mathias, Berwald, and Berwald's brother, Bjorn, he'd sometimes catch me singing softly while cooking. I hadn't sung at all while living in Olav's home.

Mathias doesn't shut up about what an "angelic voice" I have. Berwald doesn't say a word, though I know that he's just as shocked and impressed as Mathias is.

Now that I'm pretty much back to my senses, I have to remember that once I get out of the hospital, I must beat Mathias with a lead pipe so he will never remember this.

* * *

*See you tomorrow, buddy (Danish)

**Bye, Lukas (Icelandic)

***B-big brother (Icelandic)

****_Lyrics to the song_ Fairytale _by Alexander Rybak (first chorus & the lyrics after, leading up to the second chorus) _

* * *

**Matteuksen: Only you will put a cracktastic chapter after a super dark one**

**Me: It was fun~ Okay, so I actually have a couple of thank you's that I have to say for this chapter. Aside from my wonderful beta, who had to deal with a ton of whining about me having writer's block, I would also like to thank D1g1m0ncrazy for the "butt joke" that actually began the string of odd things Lukas does in this chapter. I did have a huge plan about him singing "Fairytale" in a totally hazy, drugge state. I would also like to thank OnWithTheButter for translating the lyrics. Lets give them a round of applause *claps***

**Matteuksen: *claps***

**Erik & Drake: I'm out *walk away, calling* R & R **

**Me: Out of curiousity, what would you do if you ever met me?**


	14. Chapter 13:Time Does Not Heal All Wounds

**Hey, sorry it's been so long. Between school production and midterms, I've had no time for anything (anyone who knows me on Tumblr, that was my break. As for the five part horror story for any Quizillians here, that was done during my breaks, had a deadline, & I stayed up late to write it! It was so worth it ^_^)**

**Drake: Sure it was**

**Erik: You keep tellin' yourself that**

**Me: Yeah, they're happy that they've had a break from being the targets of my writing**

**Norway: That's because ****_I _****took their place**

**Me: & its worth it~**

**Erik: Before this escalates to ridiculous proportions, I would just like to say that Nony's mood is pretty wishy-washy, since she just finished typing and editing chapter fifteen. Once the epilogue, bonus chapter, and exerpt are typed, she will probably be crying**

**Me: Erik!**

**Drake: *Facepalm* Nony does not own Hetalia in any way, shape, or form.**

* * *

Raivis's eyes slowly open. He barely registers the vast amount of tubes and wires attached to his body, the beeping of the monitors he's hooked up to, or the bandages nearly completely covering him from head to toe. He just wants the pain to go away. The pain of losing his brothers. The pain of losing Feliks. The pain of knowing that he may have just caused yet another innocent person to die.

The last thing he remembers before completely losing conciousness is Lukas being shot and the woman, Elizabeta, crying out.

"I'm glad to see you're finally awake," a female voice says.

Raivis slowly turns his head to see a pretty blonde woman. He stiffens, His exhaustion changes to fear, recalling the cruel eyes of Natalia and the look in Yekaterina's when she had tried to kill him. Natalya or Katuyasha...it had to be them, ready to finish him off in his disoriented state! He blinks, realizing that no, it's someone else.

The woman notices this.

"You don't have to be afraid of me, Raivis," she says. "I'm not going to hurt you."

"That's alright, Maddie," another voice says from the door in a thick British accent. "I'll take care of him."

Raivis and Maddie look towards the door to find the source of the voice a blonde haired female with striking green eyes.

"Alright then," Maddie stutters out. She smiles sweetly. "Take care, Raivis. Dr. Kirkland will take good care of you," she adds before leaving.

Dr. Kirkland takes a seat next to Raivis. A sympathetic look crosses her face. She pushes up her glasses before speaking.

"You really had us worried, Raivis," she says. "You sustained such severe injuries that we weren't sure whether you'd survive the night. You've been unconscious for two days in critical condition." She smiles. "This morning you stabilized. As long as nothing goes wrong, you'll make a full physical recovery in no time." Raivis notes how she specifies "physical." He knows that emotionally, it will take much longer to heal.

He listens as carefully as he can as Dr. Kirkland rattles off all the damage, internal and external, that he had when he first came in and what he has left. It's mostly broken bones and a bit of internal bleeding, as most of the major damage and bleeding had been patched up.

"I-is Mr. Bondevik okay?" Raivis asks in a strained voice.

The doctor gazes at him. A soft smile crosses her face. "Yes. He is. Right now he's resting, or so his doctor tells me. It will be a while until either of you are in any shape to even get out of bed."

Raivis sighs, happy that no one else had to die because of him.

There's a knock on the door.

Dr. Kirkland rises from her seat to answer it. Outside, stands the blonde Finnish man, Tino. Eduard's friend.

"Good afternoon, Alice," he greets Dr. Kirkland. "I have regards to you from Arthur and I wanted to know if I could see Raivis again today."

Dr. Kirkland, or Alice, smiles. "As a matter of fact, Raivis finally woke up and I would like to run some tests first. I'll give you a call when you can see him." As Tino leaves, Alice calls, "Tell Arthur I say 'hi' and to make sure he stays out of trouble."

Tino laughs. "It must be nice to have a doting little sister."

"It's nice until Big Brother winds up with a bullet in his shoulder."

Tino continues laughing as he walks off. He remembers that little incident last year.

After test after test is run on the small teenager, he finally gets some alone time until the door opens, revealing once again, Tino.

"Hey, Raivis," the Finn greets softly. "How are you feeling?"

"Not bad," Raivis replies weakly. "Tired."

Tino smiles. "That's good, I guess." He takes a seat next to Raivis's bed. Raivis flinches.

The smile fades from Tino's face.

"I know you're not so comfortable being around people after what happened, but please trust me."

Raivis curls as much as he can into a ball, fear evident in his eyes

_What have they done to him?_ Tino wonders sadly. "Raivis, you trust Lukas, right?"

Raivis looks away. "He lied to me," he replies slowly. "He said Eduard and I would be okay, but Eduard still died."

"Raivis, if it weren't for Lukas, you would have been killed. Lukas took that bullet for you."

"...I know...I guess I still trust him."

"Can you trust me?" Tino asks. "Both Eduard and Lukas trust me, so do you think you can trust me?"

"Why?" Raivis asks.

"Because I'm worried about you," Tino replies, taking Raivis's hand lightly.

A miniscule smile finds its way across Raivis's pale face. "I think so."

"So you won't mind when I come to visit you?"

"No."

Tino smiles. _It's good that Raivis is starting to trust again. _

"Have you seen Mr. Bondevik yet?" Raivis's voice snaps Tino out of his thought process.

The latter nods. "Yes. I have."

"Is he okay?"

"Yeah."

Raivis hears a bit of uncertainty in that. Tino notices the look on Raivis's face. He sighs, adding, "He can't move his legs, but he'll be fine. Don't worry. It will only hinder your own recovery." Raivis complies.

The next days pass in a blur of tests, therapy, and Tino by his bedside when he falls ill. Dr. Kirkland has been treating him well. Maddie, or Nurse Williams as he later learns, turns out to be a real sweetheart by being very tender and trusting.

One day, while sitting in a wheelchair in the lobby with Dr. Kirkland just to be out of his room, there's a whirl of activity as a brown haired man enters carrying someone around Raivis's age. Trailing behind the man is another man, this one blonde, dragging a blonde boy with him. Raivis vaguely recognizes the blonde man from the station. He can't recall his name, but he remembers everyone treating him with respect. To an extent, at least.

"...why I tell you not to pull pranks," the blonde man scolds in a heavy British accent. "Now you see what happens when you don't listen."

At the man's voice, Alice peers up.

"Hello, Arthur," she says. Arthur turns to her.

"Hello, Alice," he greets her with a smile.

"What happened?"

"One of Peter's pranks went wrong and Johann was wounded. Peter was sent home, but we came with Roderich to make sure Johann will be okay."

Alice puts her hands on her hips, her face stern. "Peter Kirkland, how many times have Arthur and I told you not to play pranks because someone would get hurt?"

Peter hangs his head in shame. "A lot. But this wasn't my fault!"

"It bloody was your fault, Peter," Arthur snaps. "You will apologize to Johann for injuring him and to Roderich for causing him so much trouble. And if you're lucky, I won't make you apologize to my boss for making us cut work."

"You're so mean, Jerk-Arthur!" Peter cries.

"Peter!" Alice snaps. She turns to Raivis. "Do you mind waiting here for a little bit? If you want to go back to your room, either ask Arthur or Nurse Williams, if you see her. If I'm not back in half an hour, I still want you back in your room." She looks at the man. "Do you mind?"

"Not all, Alice," Arthur replies.

"Thank you." She gives Arthur a quick peck on the cheek before leaving.

Peter plops down huffingly into the chair that Alice had previously occupied next to Raivis's wheelchair. He peers over at the Latvian.

"Hi there," he greets with a smile. "I'm Peter Kirkland. What's your name?"

"I-I'm Raivis Galante," Raivis stutters nervously. "A-are you related to Dr. Kirkland?"

"Nice to meet you, Raivis," Peter replies. "Yeah, Alice is my big sister. She's definitely nicer than Jerk-Arthur. He kept going on and on about how I'm grounded until I graduate high school."

"Peter," Arthur growls in a warning tone.

Peter sticks out his tongue when Arthur turns away, causing Raivis to chuckle softly. Arthur notices Raivis for the first time.

"Hello, lad," he greets. "How are you feeling?" Seeing the blank look on Raivis's face, he adds, "You may not remember me very well, but I'm Arthur Kirkland. I'm the supervisor for the team you met. In a way, I'm like Lukas's boss"

"Yes, I remember you a bit," Raivis replies. He peers down. "I guess I'm feeling better. Dr. Kirkland is finally letting me out of bed, though not for too long."

"I'm glad my sister is treating you well," Arthur says. "You can rest easy as both Yekaterina and Natalya are behind bars."

"What about Anya?" Raivis asks, his voice barely above a whisper.

"...She's gone," Arthur replies after a moment of hesitation. "She escaped. I'm sorry, but we got there too late. We're looking for her though, so don't worry, lad. We'll find her."

"Mr. Kirkland, can you take me back to my room?" Raivis requests nervously.

"Of course," Arthur replies. "And you don't have to call me 'Mr. Kirkland.' 'Arthur' is just fine." He turns to Peter. "Come along, Peter."

They return to Raivis's room, where Arthur assists the boy back into his bed.

"Thank you," Raivis says, not looking at the bushy browed man.

"I apologize for the wait," Alice says, entering the room. "Arthur, Peter, Johann is just fine. A little out of it, but just fine."

"That's good," Arthur sighs in relief. He eyes Peter. "You still have to apologize to him and Roderich."

"Aww man," Peter moans. "Where is he now?"

"Resting," Alice replies. She turns to Raivis. "Something that you should be doing."

"Can't I stay up a little longer?" Raivis pleads. "I-I want to talk to Peter some more."

A warm smile crosses Alice's face as she locks eyes with Arthur. They nod at each other in a silent conversation before agreeing to let the two boys talk on their own. The siblings exit the room to catch up a bit. Peter and Raivis chat for a while, beginning to get to know each other, though Raivis seems hesitant to become _too _close to Peter.

After a couple of hours, Arthur and Alice return. Trailing behind them are the brown-haired man and the white-haired teen, now sporting a bandage around his head, that had been rushed in. Roderich and Johann Edelstein.

Peter slings an arm around the white-haired male, and announces happily, "Raivis, this is my friend, Johann. Johann, this is Raivis."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Raivis," Johann says, his voice heavily accented.

Raivis is a little surprised to hear that Johann is a male. Johann's long braids had thrown him off. The three teens talk for a very short amount of time before Alice kicks everyone out, telling Raivis that he's lucky that she even let stay up this long.

A couple days later, Tino enters Raivis's room pushing a wheelchair with Lukas sitting in it. Raivis hadn't seen the Norwegian man since the day of the shooting. He'd heard bits and pieces of his condition and recovery from the other members of the team and Alice's conversation's with Lukas's doctor, Daniel Héderváry, including something about "a beautiful voice when singing."

Raivis notices that Lukas's face seems very pale and dark shadows have settled beneath his dark eyes. The teen also notes the hesitant movements, as though Lukas is trying not to strain an injury.

"How are you feeling, Raivis?" he asks.

Tears begin to spring in Raivis's eyes. Lukas nearly died for him and still worries about him. "I-I'm feeling much better." He swallows. "How are you? I heard about your legs-"

"I'm fine," Lukas replies. "My legs aren't a problem. My doctor says that I will regain use of them, so it's only a matter of time."

"That's good."

"I heard from Arthur that you've been talking to his and Roderich's younger brothers."

Raivis nods. "They're very nice."

"It's good that you're making friends," Tino pipes up.

Lukas nods in agreement. "It's good for you."

Tino whispers something into Lukas's ear, to which the latter replies rapidly in Norwegian. Tino nods and exits the room.

"I-is something wrong?" Raivis stutters nervously. "Is that why Mr. Tino left?"

Lukas shakes his head. He rolls up right next to Raivis's bed.

"There's nothing wrong," he says. "As a matter of fact, I have a question for you."

"What is it?" Raivis wonders. He doesn't expect the answer.

"How would you like to be my little brother?"

Raivis's eyes widen. "What are you saying?"

"I'm your new legal guardian."


	15. IMPORTANT AN

**Hi everyone, it's Nony. **

**I'm sorry if you were all hoping for a new chapter, but unfortunately, school is getting very tense now. My finals are coming up & I have test after test and copious amounts of homework that are driving me insane. I don't have much time for typing anymore, but I will keep writing with an old fashioned paper and pen in school, but it will be sitting in my writing loose-leaf until most probably the summer.**

**I'm really sorry, but I have no time.**

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**Once again, I apologize for my lack of updates. School sucks and I'm sure many of you can agree with me**

**~``AnonymousSanSama``~**


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